2025 Pitch Competition Finalists Announced for Athene Black & Brown Business Summit

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (March 10, 2025) – The West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce has announced seven finalists for the 2025 pitch competition at the Fifth Annual Athene Black & Brown Business Summit. The pitch competition is supported by Bank of America, and the Summit is presented by Wells Fargo.

“Bank of America congratulates the finalists of the Athene Black & Brown Business Summit Pitch Competition,” Annie Brandt, senior vice president and market executive for Bank of America Iowa. “We are proud to support this initiative and remain committed to fostering economic opportunity for all. Through our partnership with the WDM Chamber, we look forward to driving meaningful change in Iowa and beyond.”

Seven finalists were chosen from a pool of over 400 applicants from across the globe. These finalists will each present a five-minute pitch to the judges. Furthermore, an additional competitor will be randomly selected from the applicant pool on the day of the event.

Since 2021, over $150,000 has been awarded to business owners. This year’s finalists include:

• Do The Math 247 - Waukee, IA

• Halm Style LLC - Los Angeles, CA

• MinkeeBlue - Philadelphia, PA

• Regeily LLC - Bloomfield Hills, MI

• Sensiil Studios - Des Moines, IA

• Spoonful Wellness - Brooklyn, NY

• West X East - Brooklyn, NY

The prize amount will be divided among eight winners and the judges will determine how the prize is distributed.

“The Athene Black & Brown Business Summit Pitch Competition showcases the talent, innovation, and hard work of all entrepreneurs,” said Katherine Harrington, president and CEO of the WDM Chamber. “We’re excited to see these finalists share their ideas and take their businesses to the next level.”

The pitch competition will take place on April 16 from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Sheraton West Des Moines Hotel. To learn more and register, please visit bbbsummit.com.

Sponsors and partners of the Athene Black & Brown Business Summit play a crucial role in making this event possible. For the 2025 event, sponsors, partners, and supporters (listed alphabetically) include Athene, Bank of America, Bankers Trust, Belin McCormick, BMO, Chase, ClaimDOC, Elevate by Principal, F&G, Greater Des Moines Partnership, Google Fiber, Hy-Vee, IMT Insurance, Krause Group, Merchant Bonding Company Foundation, Microsoft, Musco Sports Lighting, NCMIC, Principal Financial Group Foundation, Queck Capital, Sammons Financial, UnityPoint Health, Wells Fargo, and Whitfield + Eddy.
 

###

 
About the Athene Black & Brown Business Summit
The Athene Black & Brown Business Summit is an annual event dedicated to providing a platform for Black and Brown 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 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.

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.