Fifth Street fashionista

By Liz Barry

Published: December 1, 2008

Isreal Tinsley takes his fashion cues from New York City.

Why? It’s the hometown of the 19-year-old’s favorite rapper, Jim Jones of Harlem, and an epicenter of hip hop fashion.

“New York is, like, the place for fashion,” he says. “If it’s happening, it’s happening in New York before it trickles down anywhere else.”

The Amherst County native owns 100%, an urban hip hop clothing story that opened in October at 512 Fifth St.

He describes his style as one part preppy, one part street. Today he wears a bright orange polo, dark blue jeans and a black hoodie. A tangle of black braids falls just below his shoulders.

“I don’t want to be too flashy but, at the same time, I want to be flashy, below the radar.”

Tinsley pads across the store’s hardwood floors in white socks. It’s a Tuesday afternoon, and the store is empty.

“I’m trying to bring a different vibe to Lynchburg, the Northern vibe,” he says.

The young entrepreneur named the shop 100% because all of the clothing is the “real thing,” not cheap knockoffs, he says.

The real thing doesn’t come cheap. Prices range from $50 to $140 for jeans, and $30 and up for T-shirts.

Tinsley hand-selects his merchandise from a clothing show in New York City. He carries Nostic, the clothing line of Jim Jones, along with Coogi, Guess, Parish and Request. He also takes special orders for custom Air Force One sneakers, and plans to stock his shelves with accessories after attending clothing shows next year.

Tinsley graduated from Monroe Education Center in 2007. After a semester of community college, he decided to put his education on hold and start a business.

Tinsley has been into fashion for as long as he can remember.

“Everyone in my family dresses neat,” Tinsley say. “It’s genetic, I guess.”

His store’s location between Machu Picchu Peruvian Restaurant and Starlight Café puts him among the ranks of Fifth Street small business owners with a stake in downtown revitalization.

Tinsley has one word to describe business so far: “Slow.”

But he expected it to be that way in the early months as he gets word out about his store through word of mouth and advertising. What he didn’t expect when he was drafting his business plan last spring was the bleaker economy.

Tinsley, who still lives with his parents in Amherst County, wants to give it a year for sales to pick up. Plan B is to open a shop in Charlottesville, and plan C is to go back to school.

“I thought, ‘Why don’t I at least try it while I’m young. If it fails, at least I won’t regret it.’”

five questions for isreal tinsley

—Clothing or accessory he can’t live without: “My Nike boots.”
—Favorite sports team: L.A. Lakers
—Just for fun: “Riding my four-wheeler (Polaris Scrambler Sports Team).”
—Best thing about living in Amherst County: “I have land where I can ride my four-wheeler.”
—Worst thing about home: “It’s too country.”