The world's biggest hockey stick is now in the hands of Bart Robertson and his team at Maxwell Auto Centre in Mill Bay, after a successful bid to the community to oversee repurposing the stick into keep-sakes.
"We're going to share it with the world," Robertson told CFAX 1070's Ryan Price. "The products are called a piece of the action."
Robertson also owns Genuine Collectables, which will handle another part of the manufacturing process for these new products: $20.00 key FOBs to start, with the intention of also offering larger wooden pucks for desktop decoration. He said Genuine Collectables is doing the certification of the souvenirs after Maxwell Auto Centre dismantles the stick.
"It's a two part deal that was submitted to the community, the CVRD (Cowichan Valley Regional District)."
Robertson didn't pay anything for the hockey stick itself, but he's eating the costs associated with moving it to the Maxwells Auto Centre lot.
With four main designs to start, Robertson estimates he's received up to 40,000 inquiries about the souvenirs. Options include a tribute to the Duncan community centre, the Penticton factory that built the stick, the stick upright at expo and classic imagery of children playing on a frozen pond.
Robertson said he's still available by phone, but the website is the most efficient way to make an order. At the moment, he's working to meet the high demand for his collectables.
"I'm doing the manufacturing myself, so we're just prototyping the procedure so someone can help with that. But it's hands-on cutting and answering calls. My daughter and my wife, it's a whole team effort with everyone here."
Robertson said community members who reserved their collectable ahead of time will get their orders first.