Building passion into enterprise

There’s no mortar in sight but there are certainly thousands of bricks at a new brick-and-mortar store in Winnipeg catering to Lego enthusiasts.

Ashton Romaniuk and Madison Froome opened Romo’s Bricks in late spring. Located at 955 Milt Stegall Dr., in the same building as CanCentral Sports Cards & Memorabilia, the store specializes in selling pre-owned Lego sets, minifigures and other Lego-related products.

“It’s something we’re both passionate about,” Froome said.

To stock the store, she and Romaniuk spent $50,000 on four large Lego collections, purchased from local collectors. Romaniuk estimates that since the store opened on June 2, inventory has grown to $250,000 worth of Lego.

One wall is dedicated to sets from the Star Wars franchise; another features a custom-made mural depicting various minifigures, including a firebreathing dragon, a skeleton and Lego versions of Romaniuk and Froome.

There’s a “pick a brick” section, a table where visitors can sit down and fill in Lego colouring pages, and a wall display made up of 30 white base plates and a trough of bricks so customers can make their own creation while browsing. Two display cases house around 5,000 minifigures.

Items in the store range in price from 50 cents to $3,000, according to Romaniuk. A new Lego set has a shelf life that spans eight months to four years, he explains, after which the Danish company retires the set and never produces it again.

“As soon as they retire them, that’s where the value (goes up) massively,” Romaniuk said.

He points to a chrome gold minifigure depicting C-3PO, the hapless humanoid robot from Star Wars. Lego manufactured 10,000 of them in 2007, randomly including them in specially marked sets. Today, they retail for $2,500.

There’s something in the store for every budget though, and customers have ranged in age from three to 90, Froome said. She and Romaniuk wanted to create a fun place for collectors, children, families and anyone who loves Lego.

The couple, both 23 years old, share that enthusiasm. Romaniuk started building Lego sets when he was four years old. After he was diagnosed with ADHD, snapping the colourful bricks together became a way to relax.

As he got older, Romaniuk never stopped building Lego. He turned Froome onto the pastime when they started dating four years ago. Their personal collection includes 450 sets.

After a few years of talking about opening a store, the couple took action when CanCentral owner and family friend Cliff Hryciuk offered them 1,500 square feet at the back of his shop. They used Romaniuk’s nickname for the store’s moniker.

Romo’s Bricks sells Lego on eBay, but Romaniuk and Froome say it’s important to them to have a storefront and do the majority of their business in person so they can build relationships.

“I like to know my customers by name, talk to them, ask them what they’re building, what they’re doing, how their week was,” Froome said. “That’s a huge part of why I love to work here.”

That in-person interaction is important, says Graeme Dymond. The Toronto resident is certified by the Lego Group as a master model builder, and while he no longer works for the company, he still builds Lego for a living through his own business, Dymond Bricks.

“In this world where everything’s becoming increasingly digital, Lego is the one thing that, when it comes to toys and children’s entertainment, has held its ground and been successful as this physical, tactile experience that brings people together,” Dymond said.

“There’s tons of options online to go to these digital spaces and find rare or vintage Lego sets, but there’s nothing quite like going into one of these stores like Romo’s Bricks.”

Dymond said while he can’t speak for the Lego Group — neither he nor Romo’s Bricks are officially affiliated with the 94-year-old business — the company’s products are growing in popularity.

The Lego Group reported last year its revenue reached around US$13 billion — a 12 per cent increase compared to 2024. The company offered its largest portfolio of products to date in 2025, with more than 860 items, around half of which were new. Consumer sales grew 16 per cent.

Hryciuk said he’s glad to have Romo’s Bricks in the building. “There’s a lot of Lego collectors that are sports cards collectors and vice versa, so I thought it’d be a good fit for the store.”

Romo’s Bricks is open Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca