About Us
Top Tier Academy was founded by 7 teens who went to Avon Middle High School. This is our story...
Top Tier was founded by 7 teens who went to Avon Middle High School. They became close friends during the Basketball season in January 2022. "Top Tier" was created from one of the members PlayStation username, and added the "Academy" to represent all of them. The first members were, Lazarus Fontes, Bradley & Brandon Charles, Travis Guillaume, Mike Morais, Josiah Guerrier, and Jordan Medeiros.
Laz Fontes was the most pivotal members of this group, with him running the youtube channel as well as the merchandise production. His youtube channel became popular in the summer of 2022 with him releasing "Top Tier Thursdays" every week on Youtube. During this time he would make himself and other members of the group Top Tier shirts which would eventually become hoodies. He would sell these shirts and hoodies to his classmates at school. To make it easier for people to buy them, he decided to make TopTierMerch.com in March of 2023. This would be a huge step for the brand, as now people who don't go to school with him could now see and buy these items.
Starting in May 2023, Laz wanted to connect to his roots with Rocky Marciano T-Shirts since they were both from Brockton, MA. This creative shirt, different from the standard lettering is something people liked. He saw this and expanded it to different athletes. Laz also wanted to connect to his roots with his Cape Verdean background. He would use popular Cape Verdean figureheads such as, Cesaria Evora, Ildo Lobo and Amilcar Cabral for his "Cape Verdean Top Tier T-Shirts". This was only the beginning and a sign of what Top Tier could further become...
Over 4 years has passed and this small high school side hustle turned into something more serious. As a brand that was primarily purchased locally in Massachusetts, since then we have reached over 35 States and even internationally to Canada, Cape Verde, Italy, Belgium and so much more.
Top Tier has evolved from a clothing brand into Top Tier Productions, a full-service media production company dedicated to helping individuals, businesses, and organizations tell their stories. In addition to designing and selling apparel, we now provide professional social media video production, content creation, photography, and event coverage for local businesses and community members throughout the region.
As a company founded by a young entrepreneur, we are proud to have met with Brockton, MA Mayor Moises Rodrigues to discuss ways to support and empower the next generation of entrepreneurs in our city. We have also had the opportunity to work with the Brockton High School Boys Basketball Team by providing custom sweatsuits after a parent approached us looking for apparel the team could wear both on game days and in everyday life. Beyond our business growth, we remain committed to giving back to our community through our Monthly Giveaway Program, where we give away prizes to our supporters every month throughout 2026 as a way of thanking those who continue to support the Top Tier movement.
The summer of 2026 marked a defining moment not only for Top Tier Merch, but for Cabo Verde as a nation. During Cabo Verde's historic first-ever FIFA World Cup appearance, we connected with our Cape Verdean community across the globe and released over 25 different products to celebrate this historic journey. What followed became our best month in company history, with hundreds of orders placed during the tournaments run. Cabo Verde captured the attention of the world by going undefeated in regulation throughout the entire tournament, even against eventual finalists Spain & Argentina. While Top Tier Merch celebrated its most successful month to date, the islands of Cabo Verde achieved something even greater. The country put their name on the map, introducing themselves to billions around the world, and creating what many consider to be the proudest month in the 50 year history of our small but resilient nation. This was more than football and clothing; it was a celebration of identity, culture, and a moment that united Cape Verdeans everywhere under one message, Nos é Um.
We are excited about the future and look forward to continuing to serve our community through apparel, media production, and meaningful local partnerships.
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