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Did you know there’s a market called AFOL that’s worth as much as $4.2 billion globally?
Adult Fans of Lego comprise between 20 and 25 per cent of Lego’s $16.9-billion annual sales, according to demographics research firm BCG Matrix.
That’s exciting for Lego, only too happy to sell the $500-plus complex sets adult fans prefer, but it’s also an opportunity for the maker crowd, and, arguably, is a case study in how small businesses can find similar market niches to exploit.
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I know of adult friends who have built a Lego Death Star and a Lego Millennium Falcon — selling for more than $1k — but it hadn’t occurred to me they’re a small part of a much bigger market.
A Brick Chick creation
So it was fascinating when a news release landed in my inbox last week about The Brick Chick. Jenn Just is the founder and has been, since 1999, supplying adult fans of Lego with unique and quirky Lego pieces to add a touch of whimsy to whatever project they’re clicking together.
“The Brick Chick is a place where Lego fans can get personalized products, things that Lego will never make for them — things that I think are funny,” she said.
A Brick Chick creation
Quirky is a good word for the Gabriola, B.C., entrepreneur, a trait she is absolutely not shy to exploit.
Instead of blending in, Just insists celebrating differences is the key to her success. With multi-coloured fluorescent hair, boldly coloured wardrobe and choice of occupations — her other hustle is an online cannabis store (handy when she ships her Lego pieces in dime bags) — she will never be accused of blending in.
She lives in a 100-year-old three-storey farmhouse and almost every room has some kind of maker equipment, from 3D and UV printers to embroidery machines and engravers.
“I’m neuro-diverse, and a lot of Lego fans are,” she says in an interview. “The superfans are often ADHD-autistic like me, so I have a lot of interests.”
Jenn Just has made a tidy little business serving adult fans of Lego. Her pieces often serve as easter eggs in customers’ larger products. (Supplied)
Lego has embraced her passion, going so far as to hire her at one point in a marketing and communications role.
The latest challenge to overcome has been Donald Trump’s war on trade.
Just says the U.S. is 80 per cent of her market, so she can’t ignore it, but the paperwork and the added costs she must pass on to her American customers has made life more difficult. “So now I have an item on my order form for tariffs, which I have to charge. As a Canadian small business, I have to pay it for them or I’m not allowed to ship.”
U.S. customers make up about 80 per cent of The Brick Chick’s market.
She must charge American customers the tariff, prove such on their invoice and then file a return and pay tariffs she’s collected. She, like a lot of small-business entrepreneurs, was especially hit with the elimination of the de minimis exemption, which allowed shipments of $800 or less to enter the U.S. unimpeded.
“I’m scaling right now, so I’ve hired an employee and doubling production,” she says, a reality that means she can work on the business as much as in it. “Which is why you’re in my Zoom window right now,” she says, laughing.
Her advice for budding maker-preneurs? Be yourself. Do what you love. Don’t shy away from what makes you unique: authenticity matters.
Readers: have any maker-preneur stories you’d like to share? Reply back to this email.
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