Alex Malecha, a Minnesota born hockey player, has been surrounded by gear his whole life, but Gear Guyz officially began with one simple SidelineSwap sale. At 15, Alex was bored over the COVID-19 pandemic, so he listed a pair of skates online hoping to make some money. The day he sold, packaged, and dropped the skates off at the post office, he was hooked.

He cleared out his family’s garage, selling every piece of outgrown hockey gear he could find. That’s when he realized something — every family, every sporting goods store, and every sports team has the same problem: piles of perfectly good equipment collecting dust. On April 17th, 2022, Alex launched Gear Guyz with a simple mission: “Give us your gear. Get your garage back.”

In the early days, inventory was tough to come by. Alex went from shop to shop in Minnesota asking if he could buy or clear out their old stock, and after several rejections, he finally found a warehouse full of discontinued and excess hockey equipment. Much of it was brand new, and instead of letting it go to waste, he sorted and organized nearly 2,000 pieces by hand, ready to give them a second life.

By his junior and senior year of high school, Alex’s mornings looked a little different than most students’. Before heading to class, he’d make daily runs to the post office and FedEx with a car packed to the roof with packages. More often than not, he’d be walking into first period a few minutes late after unloading all the orders.

Since then, Gear Guyz has exploded in both size and reputation. Alex has worked directly with NCAA and junior hockey teams, bringing in premium pro stock sticks, skates, gloves, helmets, and more. His parents help with shipping, but Alex and his friends personally inspect, photograph, and list every item — from used hockey sticks to brand new pro stock skates. Orders ship the next day, and customers always get quick, personal responses.

Today, Gear Guyz is one of the fastest-growing sources for pro stock hockey equipment in Minnesota and ships nationwide. Whether a customer is looking to buy used hockey gear online, upgrade to discount pro stock sticks, or sell their old equipment for cash, Gear Guyz offers the same promise Alex started with: honest service, quality gear, and fast shipping.