Check out the clothing line putting the 519 at the forefront
Ten per cent of proceeds donated each month to the First Episode Mood and Anxiety Program (FEMAP)
Londoners Taylor Norris and Tyler Wilson were just 18 years old when they decided to create a brand that paid tribute to the area they call home.
As first year business students at King's University College, the two friends were eager to put into practice what they were learning each day in class.
With a lot of support from their families and friends, the pair of young entrepreneurs launched Five One Nine Clothing, an online clothing store that promised to put London's area code, literally, at the forefront.
"We love where we live. We've grown up here, we've had a lot of good experiences here and we wanted to show that," Norris said.
The clothing line consists of a variety of t-shirts, hoodies, sweaters and hats, all with London's area code on them. Some items also include the city's geographic coordinates.
Norris says they wanted to foster a bigger sense of pride for the city in the community.
"I think London is a really underrated city. Now that it's growing, I think having something like this can help pull the community together," he said.
Fashion with a purpose
For the pair, creating a clothing line that supported their city wasn't enough. They wanted to create something that had the potential to give back to the community.
Norris says that from their early stages of the company's development, they knew they wanted to help support mental health efforts in the community.
"We know a lot of people who have been affected by mental health, so it was something big for us when thinking of how we wanted to give back," Norris said.
Each month, Five One Nine Clothing donates 10 per cent of their proceeds to the First Episode Mood and Anxiety Program (FEMAP) at the London Health Sciences Centre.
Originally, the group was going to donate to different mental health organizations, but after a month of working with FEMAP, they knew they had to stay with them.
"FEMAP helps kids in our age group," Norris said. "We know a lot of people who have gone through the struggles of mental health. We've seen it firsthand, so it was easy to decide to continue working with them."
So far, the company has been able to donate $3000 to the program, but they've set a goal of raising between $5,000 -$10,000 by the end of this year.
"I think it's really cool to pull the community together through clothes. Not only is it supporting our city, but also mental health," Norris added.