A Melbourne man has turned his passion for Lego into a multi-million dollar global business by transforming the way construction toys are created.

Dad-of-three Kenny Lee is obsessed with Lego and said his lightbulb moment came when he was arguing with his wife about the amount he was spending on his hobby.

“I was arguing with my wife about the money I was spending on Lego and I thought, ‘How can I turn this into a business so that my Lego spending is guilt-free?'” he said. he declared.

Lee thought Lego would need lighting.

“As soon as I turned on the flashing lights on the barber shop sign, that’s when the spark took place and that’s when I was like, ‘I’m sure something,’” he said.

He started the Light My Bricks business in 2016 with $10,000 as an initial investment.

The company specializes in LED lighting kits that bring assembled creations to life.

“A lighting system that allows customers to enjoy building Lego, building that Lego set or allowing them to retrofit that Lego set, essentially bringing the set to life,” Lee said.

Light My Bricks is now sold worldwide in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia and employs 30 Lego aficionados.

“I’m working on the Adam West 66 Batmobile that just started today and we’re lighting it up,” Brett McColl said.

With prices ranging from $30 to $300, last year’s revenue was $12 million and it’s no surprise that their customers are adults.

“We are the ones who have disposable income. We are the ones who will build and display, unlike the children who build and destroy,” Lee said.

Matt Nardella’s serious Lego “addiction” began when he came across Ninja Turtle Lego.

“I was like, ‘I have to buy these,’ you know, it took me back to my childhood… I bought them, I built them and then one thing led to another and 11 years later I “I’m that far now,” he said.

Legoland has taken over Nardella’s entire garage. He was delighted to discover that he could enlighten them.

“I was naturally panicked and was like, ‘Yeah, I found some and I think I bought five or six in one go,’” he said.

In fact, he was one of Lee’s first clients and clearly remains a strong client.

Nardella’s estimated spending on Lego and lighting is between $60,000 and $70,000.

He spends 25 to 30 hours a week building this miniature world and his apprentice approves.

“I’m really proud of him because he did this and I was really shocked when I got here,” said his son Zayden Nardella.

Another defining moment for Lee was when he realized he could help with other exciting projects, so he branched out from Lego to other toys, from robots to model cars.

“There are so many hobbies and you can literally light up anything and we’re excited to get into that,” he said.

It’s safe to say that he definitely won that argument with his wife. 

“I finally did it and if you asked her how she felt, she would probably say it was the only time she was wrong,” Lee said.