Bricks & Minifigs Ends Salem, Oregon Franchise Partnership with Brandon Best and Joshua Johnson
Bricks & Minifigs says it has permanently closed its Salem, Oregon store and reached a mutual agreement to part ways with franchise owners Brandon Best and Joshua Johnson following a social media dispute. The company says its ongoing review uncovered evidence of serious operational failures tied to the store’s prior ownership and the handling of records after the transition.
The dispute centers on collector Bryan Mansell and his father’s Star Wars LEGO collection, which Bricks & Minifigs says was handled through an unauthorized private consignment arrangement at the Salem store before the current franchise owners took over. According to the company, the arrangement was made by former franchisee Chrystal Law/Gorman without corporate authorization and without formally informing the incoming franchisees.
Company leaders say they have been seeking documentation for an extended period and recently obtained additional records through internal and external assistance. Bricks & Minifigs CEO Ammon McNeff said the company now has enough information to pursue a resolution and has invited Mansell to meet, review the spreadsheets and point-of-sale data, and discuss compensation for any missing items or payments. He also said the company is prepared to discuss dropping a lawsuit against Mansell.
The company says new documentation challenges the public narrative surrounding the collection’s value. It says three separate spreadsheets associated with the collection were found, along with point-of-sale data covering September 2023 through November 2024. Based on that material, Bricks & Minifigs estimates the collection’s value at about $95,000 to $100,000, which it says is more consistent with statements Bryan Mansell made publicly in 2025 and with the amount he sought when he visited the store in November 2024.
Bricks & Minifigs also says the widely circulated $200,000 figure was not a documented valuation, but a promotional number used to generate interest for a public viewing event in November 2023. The company says its review indicates that more than $52,000, and possibly more, was sold from the collection during Law/Gorman’s tenure, and that her records differ from what was publicly reported.
Matt McNeff, chief operating officer, said the investigation showed the incoming franchisees were not prepared for the responsibilities tied to a forensic accounting review of the store’s records. He said former franchisee Chrystal Law/Gorman retained personal access to company-related data and should have disclosed the arrangement much earlier.
Bricks & Minifigs says it has offered to return the physical inventory to Mansell multiple times, most recently in December 2025 and again in May 2026. The company says Law/Gorman informed corporate in November 2024 that she did not intend to continue as a franchisee, citing business struggles and a job opportunity abroad for her partner. Bricks & Minifigs says she owed nearly $200,000 at the time of separation, leaving no payout due.
A GoFundMe campaign for Bryan Mansell had raised more than $350,000 as of June 3, 2026.
