Kalinsky is the founder of the ultra-chic meatpacking district store Jeffrey, renowned for its flawless selection of high-end labels.

A Charleston native, Kalinsky spent his teenage summers working at his dad's store, Bob Ellis Shoes, before heading off to George Washington University. Kalinsky returned to footwear after graduating, working as the shoe manager of a Bonwit Teller outside of Philadelphia and as a shoe buyer at Barneys New York. In 1990, Kalinsky returned to the south to open an outpost of Bob Ellis in Atlanta in partnership with his father, Morris. In 1994 Kalinsky expanded with Jeffrey Atlanta, a fashion-forward store selling a handful of upscale designers. In 1999, he transported the concept to the city, opening Jeffrey New York in a 12,000-square-foot meatpacking district space in the shadow of the crumbling High Line, a block from a gas station. Jeffrey was one of the first high-end boutiques to open in the soon-to-be swank enclave, but a number of major fashion labels—not to mention clubs and restaurants—soon followed, earning Kalinsky a rep as the neighborhood pioneer. In August 2005, Nordstrom purchased a 51 percent stake in the company, and he signed on as the company's director of designer merchandising. [Image via Getty]