West Des Moines Chamber Announces Pitch Competition Winners for Athene Black & Brown Business Summit

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (April 17, 2025) — The West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce has announced the winners of the 2025 Athene Black & Brown Business Summit Pitch Competition. The pitch competition was held on April 16 and is supported by Bank of America. The Athene Black & Brown Business Summit is presented by Wells Fargo.

For the 2025 event, more than 400 applications were submitted by small-business owners from across the world, including several from Iowa. Seven finalists were chosen in early March to give a five-minute business pitch in front of judges at the Summit. An eighth contestant was chosen at random from among attendees who had also applied, bringing the total to eight finalists. The eight finalists included:

• Do The Math 247, Waukee, Iowa

• MinkeeBlue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Real Estate Investor Goddesses, Los Angeles, California

• Regeily LLC, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

• Sensiil Studios, Des Moines, Iowa

• Spoonful Wellness, Brooklyn, New York

• West X East, Brooklyn, New York

• Relationship Wealth Enterprises, Waukee, IA

With the support of generous sponsors, donors, over $190,000 has been raised for the pitch competition winners and finalists since 2021. In 2025, a total of $40,000 was divided among the winners of the pitch competition and distributed based on final rankings. This year’s pitch competition winners are:

• First-place: MinkeeBlue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Second-place: Sensiil Studios, Des Moines, Iowa

• Third-place (tie): Spoonful Wellness and West X East, Brooklyn, New York

“I’m incredibly grateful to be the winner of the 2025 Athene Black & Brown Business Summit pitch competition,” said Sherrill Mosee, founder & CEO of MinkeeBlue. “Opportunities like this are rare, and this support will go a long way in helping grow my business, and I can’t thank the West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce enough for making this possible. Thank you to Katherine Harrington, the volunteers, and everyone who helped bring this event to life. I truly appreciate all of you.”
 
“Congratulations to this year’s pitch competition winners, and a big thank you to all the participants who brought their entrepreneurial spirit to the stage,” said Annie Brandt, senior vice president and market executive for Bank of America Iowa. “The creativity and passion on display were truly inspiring. Events like this highlight the importance of connection in the entrepreneurial journey, and Bank of America is proud to support this annual celebration of innovation and community impact.”

Visit www.wdmchamber.org/BBBSummit to learn more.

Sponsors and partners
The Athene Black & Brown Business Summit is made possible through the generous support of sponsors and partners committed to advancing innovation and entrepreneurship.

Athene is the naming sponsor. Wells Fargo is the presenting sponsor. The Principal Financial Group Foundation® is sponsoring the newly introduced Catalyst Award. Bank of America is sponsoring the Pitch Competition.

Additional sponsors and supporters include Amplified DSM, Arroyo Photography, Bankers Trust, Belin McCormick, BMO, Chase, ClaimDOC, Delta Dental Foundation, Elevate by Principal, EMC Insurance, F&G, Google Fiber, Greater Des Moines Partnership, Hy-Vee, IMT Insurance, Iowa Economic Development Authority, Krause Group, Merchant Bonding Company Foundation, Microsoft, MidAmerican Energy Company Foundation, Musco Sports Lighting, NCMIC, Sammons Financial, Smash Park, UnityPoint Health, Verizon Business and Whitfield + Eddy.
 

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About the Athene Black & Brown Business Summit
The Athene Black & Brown Business Summit is an annual event dedicated to providing a platform for professionals, entrepreneurs and leaders to share insights, inspire change and foster connections. The Summit serves as a catalyst for growth, empowerment and collaboration within the community.

About Athene
Athene is a leading retirement services company with over $360 billion of total assets as of December 31, 2024, and operations in the United States, Bermuda, Canada, and Japan. Athene is focused on providing financial security to individuals by offering an attractive suite of retirement income and savings products and also serves as a solutions provider to corporations. For more information, please visit www.athene.com.

About Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 69 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,700 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs (automated teller machines) and award-winning digital banking with approximately 58 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 4 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BAC). For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements and other important information, visit the Bank of America newsroom and register for news email alerts.

About the West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce
The West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce, established in 1924, is a dynamic organization dedicated to championing all things West Des Moines. With a focus on strengthening local businesses, providing personalized resources, and attracting a top-tier workforce, the Chamber aims to position WDM as the best suburban city in America. Celebrating a century of excellence, the Chamber boasts a diverse community of over 900 members, offering something for everyone. Explore the possibilities, learn more about the chamber, and discover how you can get involved in shaping the future of West Des Moines at wdmchamber.org