Former Owner Furious After $200,000 Lego Collection Goes Missing From Bricks & Minifigs
The case highlights the risks of consignment sales in franchise operations, where ownership changes can leave consignors without recourse and create conflicting accounts of inventory.
Reporting from 1 sources: GIGAZINE.
A dispute over a consigned Lego collection valued at over $200,000 has erupted between collector Ed Mansell and his son Bryan Mansell and the franchise chain Bricks & Minifigs. The Mansells consigned their Star Wars Lego collection to a Bricks & Minifigs Salem-Keizer franchise location, which advertised the collection enthusiastically. After the franchise changed ownership under new management, the Mansells say they were turned away and banned from the premises. YouTuber Reckless Ben began documenting the case, leading to review bombing and harassment of Bricks & Minifigs staff. Bricks & Minifigs issued a statement denying the theft, arguing the original consignment contract was unauthorized and that the collection was not present when it took over the store. The company later found some items worth between $2,000 and $5,000 that may belong to the Mansells, but the rest of the collection remains unaccounted for. Sales records show over $50,000 worth of similar items were sold, and inventory logs indicate the collection was moved to an external warehouse. Bricks & Minifigs offered to buy the found items as compensation, but the Mansells refused.
The dispute began when the former owner of the Salem-Kaiser Bricks & Minifigs franchise entered a consignment agreement with Ed Mansell and his son Bryan Mansell to sell their Lego Star Wars collection. The former owner estimated the collection at over $200,000 and promoted it on Facebook. After Bricks & Minifigs took control of the franchise and installed a new owner, the Mansells say they were told the contract was invalid and were banned from the store.
YouTuber Reckless Ben became involved, attempting to speak with Bricks & Minifigs corporate leadership. He was banned from the premises and police were called multiple times, though they declined to intervene, citing civil matters. Reckless Ben alleges that Josh Johnson and Brandon Best were central to the takeover, with Best present when the former owner was removed and obstructing the return of consigned items. Johnson initially acknowledged the collection existed and said it was stored separately, but later claimed it never existed.
Bricks & Minifigs' statement asserts it does not permit consignment sales and that the former franchise owner was terminated for failing to make payments. The company says it found only a small portion of the collection and does not know the location of the rest. Sales records show over $50,000 in similar items were sold, but the Mansells have not disclosed whether they received any proceeds. The company also noted that reports of the store closing due to a lawsuit are false; it closed temporarily due to employee stalking.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.