Open for Business: Bricks & Minifigs

Bricks & Minifigs
The Bricks & Minifigs toy store specializing in Lego bricks made its Queen City debut Feb. 18. The shop at 1570 E. Battlefield Road, Ste. E, in the Galleria Shopping Center, is part of a nationwide chain of stores where customers can buy, sell and trade new and used Lego pieces, sets and minifigures. Phil Vice and his wife, Tiffany, are franchisees of the shop, operating the business through Miami Vice LLC. He said the Springfield shop is the second in Missouri, noting the couple invested $200,000 in startup costs, which included a $25,000 franchise fee. Additionally, he said they signed a five-year lease for an undisclosed rate with Warren Davis Properties LLC. The 3,000-square-foot store employs five, Vice said, noting the resale franchise orders Lego products directly from the Denmark-based company. Bricks & Minifigs opened its first shop in 2010 and has nearly 60 locations in the U.S., with another 23 listed as coming soon, according to its website.
Phone: 417-771-5255
Web: BricksAndMinifigs.com/springfield-mo

Blue Iguana Car Wash
Blue Iguana Car Wash, a 10-year-old company owned by husband and wife Greg and Robin Byler, opened its sixth Springfield location Feb. 2 at 1137 W. Kearney St. Greg Byler said Springfield-based Fusion Consulting LLC was general contractor for the project designed by St. Louis-based Levine Associates. The newest Blue Iguana, which he said employs 10, is a remodeled car wash, formerly occupied by Ye Olde Buggy Bath. He declined to disclose startup costs for the 6,100-square-foot facility, which offers a tunnel car wash as well as self-service bays. The tunnel wash cleans vehicles in three minutes and starts at $5, while a wash club membership, which allows unlimited washes, begins at $15 per month. Free vacuums are provided at each location for those washing their cars. Byler said three other Blue Iguana shops are in development, declining to disclose details. The company has additional car washes on Sunshine Street, Campbell Avenue, Chestnut Expressway, Fremont Avenue and Kearney Street.
Phone: 877-748-7867
Web: BlueIguana.com

Senor Julian Mexican Bar & Grill
Family-owned Senor Julian Mexican Bar & Grill opened Dec. 3 at 3405 E. Battlefield Road, Ste. 100, near U.S. Highway 65. Co-owner Nelson Villela declined to disclose startup costs or terms of the eatery’s five-year lease. He said Senor Julian, which employs 15, fills 1,800 square feet in the strip center formerly occupied by a Daylight Donuts shop. Villela said the other owners are his father and the restaurant’s namesake, Julian, his mother, Guille, and his siblings, Edson and Brenda. He said the five owners have a combined 70 years of experience in the restaurant industry, noting his parents have worked in food service for four decades. Villela said it has been a lifelong dream of the family to open their own restaurant. The menu includes tacos, enchiladas, fajitas and weekend specials, such as menudo, a Mexican soup, and pozole, a stew made with pork and hominy. Prices range $5-$20.
Phone: 417-240-2120
Email: trueflavors@senorjulian.com