megashed

n.

A massive store or distribution warehouse, particularly one with a plain or unattractive exterior. Also: mega-shed.

Example Citations:

A new word has entered the vocabulary of environmental protest: megashed. A well-organised "stop the shed" campaign is currently centring on a disused RAF airfield just outside Andover, next to the busy A303, where Tesco plans to build an enormous distribution warehouse. Yet big sheds — those huge, windowless warehouses you see at major road intersections — have been around for nearly 40 years, and for most of their history they have been left off maps, unmentioned and ignored by the general public.

—Joe Moran, " Big-shed nation: http://www.newstatesman.com/uk-politics/2008/08/shed-goods-warehouses-near," New Statesman, August 18, 2008

Outside the business pages, it will probably be Tesco the bulldozer that makes headlines, as it is lambasted for supposedly demolishing traditional high streets and replacing small shops with its category-killing megasheds.

—George MacDonald, "Tesco needs to spread word of its good work," Retail Week, April 21, 2006

Earliest Citation:

First there were the friendly neighbourhood ironmongers. Then came the out-of- town superstore. Now, courtesy of Kingfisher, comes the next generation of DIY outlet, the mega-shed. Called Depot (and appropriately given the American pronunciation Dee Poe), at 70,000 sq ft these are twice the size of typical B&Q stores and stock double the number of lines.

—"View from City Road: Plenty of mileage at Kingfisher," The Independent (London), September 16, 1992

Notes:

Here's a slightly older citation that refers to a massive theater:

Still, the amphitheater has virtues. Sight lines and acoustics are far better than you'll find in larger facilities, the river view and Memphis skyline are unique and, nowadays, a 5,000-seat facility seems positively intimate compared with the modern mega-sheds.

—Larry Nager, "Island's a tough sell for shows," The Commercial Appeal, May 23, 1992

Related Words:

big-box store

landscraper

megadiversity

power center

shedista

walkshed

Categories:

Retail

Housing and Architecture