Meet the Winners of Sensei’s Shed Design Contest at Shed Builder Expo
You can tell people what a 3D shed designer can do. Or you can hand it to people who actually know sheds and say: “Show us what you’d build.”
We chose the second option.
At Shed Builder Expo 2026, held September 23–24 at the Knoxville Convention Center, Sensei Digital invited attendees to Booth 1711 to take the Shed Design Challenge. Participants created and submitted designs using Sensei Shed Designer+, with Milwaukee tools up for grabs.
The entries are in. The winners have been selected. Let’s give them their moment.
Meet Our Shed Design Challenge Winners
🏆 1st Place: Javan Miller
Prize: Milwaukee Tool Kit
🥈 2nd Place: Jacob Menzel
Prize: Milwaukee Nail Gun
Congratulations to both winners, and thank you to everyone who entered. You brought an idea, worked through it in the designer, and submitted a building of your own. We appreciate you making the challenge part of your Expo visit.
And yes, the Milwaukee tools might have given people a little extra motivation. We know our audience.
The Invitation Was Simple: Build What You Have in Mind
Before the Expo, we asked attendees to bring an idea to Sensei: The model customers keep asking for. The layout you think would move on your lot. The building you’ve had in mind for a while.
At Booth 1711, the challenge gave those ideas somewhere to go.
Participants used Sensei Shed Designer+ to create their entries, explore the available options, and see their buildings take shape in 3D. Attendees could approach the software with something of their own to create. Each choice became part of the entry they would submit. A software demo can tell you a feature exists. Using it tells you whether it makes sense.
A Design Challenge With a Real Business Connection
Sensei Shed Designer+ updates pricing as options are added or removed. For shed dealers and manufacturers, that connects the visual experience to a question their customers ask every day: “What will it cost?”
A customer considering another window or an added component needs to understand how that choice affects the price. Showing the change as they configure the building helps keep the design and budget in the same conversation. The salesperson can address specifications in real-time. The customer can weigh the options while making a decision.
That gave the challenge a practical connection to shed sales. Participants were creating entries with software designed to help buyers work through choices a dealership can then discuss and quote.
The Milwaukee prizes were for the competition. The connection between the building and its price, however, is relevant every day.
From “Here’s My Design” to “What Happens Next?”
Our pre-show invitation also encouraged attendees to ask the Sensei team to follow a building into the sales process. This covered the path from lead to quote, from quote to deposit, and all the way to finalizing the order.
That opened the door to a broader conversation about how Sensei could work for their businesses. For a dealer, a finished design starts the next conversation. The team needs to review what the customer selected, answer questions, and move toward a quote and an order.
Sensei Shed Designer+ supports quote generation directly from the builder. The broader Sensei platform connects design and quoting with CRM tools for customer information, follow-up, payments, and orders. Those wider capabilities were part of the discussion attendees were invited to explore with our team. The challenge itself focused on creating and submitting a design.
Putting those two things together showed what teams can do with a design when their entire process is streamlined.
Thanks for Taking the Challenge, Knoxville
Shed Builder Expo 2026 gave us a place to put Sensei Shed Designer+ in attendees’ hands and invite them to bring their own ideas to the screen. Thank you to everyone who visited Booth 1711, took part in the challenge, or made time to meet our team.
And congratulations again to Winner 1, our Milwaukee Tool Kit winner, and Winner 2, our Milwaukee Nail Gun winner. We hope you get plenty of use out of the tools.
Missed the Expo? You Can Still Take a Turn.
The competition is finished, but the designer is available to explore. Choose a model, work through the available options, and see how the building and pricing respond. Start with an idea you know well, and see what it can do for you.
If you want to see how Sensei could fit your models, pricing, and sales process, book a Shed Designer+ demo. You know the sheds you sell. Show us what you’d build.
