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Reckless Ben opened Reckless Bricks in former franchise store

The Tucson opening came while BAM Franchising’s federal lawsuit over his Oregon LEGO investigation remained active.

Reckless Ben opened Reckless Bricks at noon on September 12 at 8110 S Houghton Road, Suite 162, in Tucson. The suite had housed Bricks & Minifigs Southeast Tucson until Saturday’s launch, which he livestreamed on his channel.

Benjamin Schneider built a large YouTube following this year with uploads about a disputed LEGO Star Wars collection that the Mansell family consigned to a Bricks & Minifigs store in Oregon. BAM Franchising sued Schneider and other defendants in June. A federal judge allowed him to discuss the lawsuit and conduct lawful investigative journalism while barring threats, trespassing, doxxing, and interference with Bricks & Minifigs stores.

Sheldon Norcross, Total AFOL, and BJC Live also streamed from inside the store. Reckless Bricks sells LEGO sets, bulk bricks, trade-ins, and collectibles.

During the opening stream Schneider said the prior operator struggled and believed the business was weeks from closing. He said sales were down 70% from the prior year, a figure reporters could not verify independently. He told other Bricks & Minifigs owners they could rebrand under Reckless Bricks and pay no royalties, contrasting with BAM’s franchise agreement that requires the greater of 6% of revenue or $500 per month.

"If this store is successful, then all of the other stores might follow," he said. "And so we're calling this the first domino."

Hours later, BAM marketing director Katelyn Fagan messaged franchisees on Slack. She acknowledged Reckless Bricks was operating from the former Southeast Tucson site and wrote, "Corporate is taking swift, decisive, and appropriate action in response." She apologized for any blowback the opening could create for other owners.

BAM did not publicly describe the action it planned to take. Its store locator still listed the Tucson address as Bricks & Minifigs Southeast Tucson on Saturday afternoon as customers entered Reckless Bricks.

Schneider’s anti-SLAPP motion in the ongoing case is due September 18, with mediation scheduled for the following week.