A new Madison County store offers Lego merch and the 'experience …

Many of my fondest childhood memories include some of the toys I had growing up. Strawberry Shortcake, Cabbage Patch Kids, Rainbow Brite (I still have that doll) … and Lego. My first Lego sets – my gateway Lego, if you will – were from the Classic Space series in the early 1980s.

I also had the Shell Service Station set (two of them, actually), a set from the Castle series (with horses!) and other smaller brick sets. I loved Lego. My mom, however, did not.

It got to the point that I never put them away because there was always a work in progress. So my mom boxed them up and hid them away. Eventually – many moons later – she gave them back.

I had pretty much outgrown them by then. But in 1999, when the first film in the Star Wars prequel trilogy – “Episode I – The Phantom Menace,” hit theaters, Lego released the first Star Wars Lego sets. I really wanted these sets, but there was a problem: I knew that if I had one of them, I would have to have ALL of them (still true).

And as a college student at the time, all of my money went to tuition and school/art supplies. So alas, no Star Wars Lego – or any Lego, really – for me. To this day, I haven’t bought any Lego for myself. (My Lego Darth Vader pen doesn’t count.)

The two sets I have today – The Louvre and The Beatles Yellow Submarine – were given to me by my favorite brother. But a great new store opening in Glen Carbon just might cause me to fall off the Lego wagon.

Getting started

Bricks & Minifigs in Glen Carbon is an aftermarket Lego shop specializing in new and used Lego items. Owned by Madrigal Vorce Brown of O’Fallon, this store is one of many that offers Lego sets, bricks, minifigs (Lego people) and more.

I met with Brown to learn more about and to get a sneak peek of the store (which was difficult to leave after the interview). Brown, who is originally from Granite City and has also lived in the Alton and Edwardsville areas, is a former teacher. She taught at different grade levels and worked as a reading interventionist for more than a decade in Barrow, Alaska.

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Brown moved back to this area in 2020. She said she wanted to start a business but felt she was too old to start from scratch.

So in December 2021, Brown started looking into franchising opportunities. Someone suggested that the area needed a Bricks & Minifigs. She hadn’t heard of it but researched it and visited a few stores.

She loved them. Brown said she liked Bricks & Minifigs because “it’s not just a retail store … there’s an experience that goes along with it.” She bought her franchise in February 2022.

Since then, she and her team – with help from her family – worked to get the store ready to open.

Lego for everyone!

And as far as the store goes – Everything is awesome! (Admit it. You sang that, didn’t you?) Upon entering Bricks & Minifigs, I noticed that the space is colorful like Lego bricks – the walls are different colors, and the carpet has squares of color.

At the center of the store is the main counter. All around it are displays of minifigs, sorted by theme and series: Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, The Simpsons, Star Wars (yay!), Marvel superheroes and so many more.

Minifigs at Bricks & Minifigs include characters from


Minifigs at Bricks & Minifigs include characters from “Game of Thrones” and other popular movies and TV shows

There are even some custom minifigs that include He-Man and She-Ra (my inner ’80s child squealed with delight), Jane Austen (got my eye on this one), Queen, Metallica and multiple others. One end of the store has a display of retired and collectible sets that are pretty neat to see.

There’s a set for Central Perk from “Friends,” Old Trafford (the stadium of Manchester United Football Club) and ECTO-1 (the car) from “Ghostbusters.” Brown has some older sets from the 1970s-80s, including a 1989 Batmobile. The store also carries some harder-to-find minifigs, including Deadpool and the Rancor from “Return of the Jedi.”

“Sorry, no Mr. Gold,” said Brown. (If you know, you know.)

Retired and classic Lego sets on display and available for purchase


Retired and classic Lego sets on display and available for purchase

She will take unique requests from people looking for certain sets or pieces.

Bricks & Minifigs is part of a network of stores, so Brown and her team can help people track down coveted Lego. The other end of the store has sets from multiple series: Architecture, LEGO Friends, the Botanical Collection, Harry Potter and, of course, Star Wars (glorious to behold). Throughout the store there are bulk tables of individual bricks and other pieces.

A separate table has minifig parts where one can create their own unique Lego people. At Bricks & Minifigs, Lego fans can buy new sets, used sets, retired sets, individual pieces missing from their existing sets and bricks for custom builds. There are even accessories like recycled plastic displays to show off your favorite minifigs.

And the store has a room for birthday parties and other events. (Maybe my next girls’ night out?)

A variety of Star Wars Lego sets are available for purchase at Bricks & Minifigs.


A variety of Star Wars Lego sets are available for purchase at Bricks & Minifigs.

A growing community

Kid fans of Lego (KFOLs) and adult fans of Lego (AFOLs) will enjoy Bricks & Minifigs, as will those who aren’t as into but still appreciate Lego. FYI – The official plural for Lego, according to The Brothers Brick website, is “LEGO brand building bricks.” The term in the website’s glossary goes on to state, “That’s ridiculous, though, so most LEGO fans refer to one or more bricks as ‘LEGO’, following the grammatical convention of ‘fish’ and ‘sheep.'”

Brown is an AFOL. She’s not a big collector, but values the versatility of the toy. It is usually sold in sets with instructions for assembly, but Brown likes that Lego allows a person to be creative and artistic with it.

As for serious collectors and enthusiasts, Derrek Pease of the Gateway Lego User Group said in a phone interview that it’s a growing community. Pease lives in South County and is the president of the Lego club, which puts together the annual Lego display at the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. It’s because of the display at the Shrine that Pease discovered so many others share his interest.

A member of the Lego club for about 5-6 years, Pease buys Lego wherever he can, including Walmart, Target, Facebook Marketplace and other online sources. He said there’s also The Lego Store West County in Des Peres and a Bricks & Minifigs store in O’Fallon, Missouri. Pease is familiar with the Bricks & Minifigs business model and visited stores in other states.

He said that the greater Lego community is excited about these types of stores that buy, sell and trade Lego and is glad that another location is opening in the metro-east. He mentioned that one member of the Lego club is from Maryville and is ecstatic about the new Glen Carbon store. As an AFOL and collector, Pease feels it’s easier as an adult to buy sets and pieces he couldn’t as a kid.

Pease collects Star Wars Lego. He started with a £5-10 set of the droids C-3PO and R2-D2. He currently has more than 1,000 Star Wars minifigs (That’s the dream!) and said there are around 1,300 of them total.

If you visited the display at the Shrine in December, you may have noticed (and drooled over) that collection of Star Wars minifigs. Yeah, those belong to Pease. (Jealous!) Pease also said that Lego has taken to marketing their products to adults.

These sets include the wonders of the world, movies, pop culture, vehicles, architecture and other more elaborate designs. A complete set is sorted into multiple sections, bagged separately, making it a group activity for 3-4 people. Sounds like a good idea for a gathering in the party room at Bricks & Minifigs.

* * * With all of the fun to be had at Bricks & Minifigs, a visit (or two … or 10) should totally be added to your to-do list. “You just never know what you’re gonna find here,” said Brown. “You can just find treasure here one day, you have no idea.”

So as the new Bricks & Minifigs store prepares to provide Lego to the masses, here are the three main takeaways from this column: One – Lego isn’t just for kids. Well, it isn’t just for little kids.

Plenty of big kids love it too. Two – You don’t have to be a big Lego fan or a collector to enjoy Lego or places like Bricks & Minifigs. Who knows?

It could be the start of a great new hobby or collection. Three – I am a huge Star Wars nerd. And I may need to start my own minifig collection.

New, used, retired, rare, and bulk Legos can be found at the new Bricks & Minifigs location in Glen Carbon, Illinois.
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pThe location can also host parties.


New, used, retired, rare, and bulk Legos can be found at the new Bricks & Minifigs location in Glen Carbon, Illinois. The location can also host parties.

About Bricks & Minifigs

Bricks & Minifigs is located at 4235 State Route 159, Suite 2A, in Glen Carbon.

The store’s grand opening is at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 29. The event will feature food trucks, the Hot Mess Express Coffee truck, surprise giveaway items, raffles and plenty of Lego fun.

After the grand opening, Bricks & Minifigs will be open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Sunday. The store is currently open on a limited basis but will be open Saturdays between now and the grand opening, according to Brown.

For information about Bricks & Minifigs, call 618-650-8007 or visit bricksandminifigs.com/metroeaststl-il or the store’s Facebook page.