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Meet The Winners Of The 2021 NYC Pitch Competition

Updated: Jan 4, 2022

Auzerais Bellamy - 1st Place Winner

Auzerais Bellamy - 1st Place Winner | Black Girl Ventures

Auzerais Bellamy is the Founder of Blondery. Blondery is a direct-to-consumer virtual bakery that specializes in a distinctive collection of handmade blondies inspired by generosity. Auzerais is a professional pastry chef who saw a need for consumers to experience fine dining at home.


You can see this through their lux and chic packaging. Baked to order in Brooklyn and shipped nationwide, Blondery solves the essential question of what to give when you want a unique and delicious gift for yourself or others any time of year.


Blondery reflects her passion for making the perfect blondie. There are no artificial ingredients, and Auzerais sources the freshest ingredients possible. Frustrated with the lack of representation in fine dining, Auzerais set out to change this. She was the pastry sous chef at Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery and worked as the executive pastry chef at Brooklyn's Pies' n' Thighs and Ducasse's Benoit Bistro. Lastly, she staged at Michelin-starred establishments The French Laundry in California and Per Se in New York.


Auzerais is a lifelong advocate for social change and recently donated half the proceeds from her Brooklyn Blackout Blondies to the Equal Justice Initiative as part of the nationwide Bakers Against Racism campaign. She's committed to the profession a better place for women and people of color.



Assunta Wilson - 2nd Place Winner

Assunta Wilson - 2nd Place Winner | Black Girl Ventures

Assunta Wilson is the Founder of B.Renewed, as a hair loss practitioner on a mission to bridge the gap between mental health and hair loss. Like many of her clients, she underwent her hair loss journey, leading to depression. This experience propelled Assunta to create the patented and trademark InstaBun, which also acts as a protective style.


This incredible invention allows individuals to wear their wigs quickly and in various styles. It can last up to one year with proper care and costs less than frequent visits to the salon. Assunta creates various styles and accommodates different hair textures.


Several attachments can sit on top of the bun, further enhancing the style's versatility. Her constant innovation helps her to remain ahead of the competition. She also creates medical wigs specifically for those suffering from hair loss due to medical conditions.


Tai Ceme - 3rd Place Winner

Tai Ceme - 3rd Place Winner | Black Girl Ventures

Tai Ceme is the Founder of Tai-Lite Beauty. She is a makeup artist who specializes in editorial makeup. Experimenting with color has always been a huge part of her artistry. She loved creating vibrant, clean looks on set but wanted to bring that same aesthetic into people's daily makeup routines. She says, "It feels carefree, expressive, fun..like there are no rules."


Tai focuses on developing products produced with skin-loving ingredients yet suitable for all skin types and tones. She created Glow Pigments, a vibrant, lightweight multi-purpose glow pigment that can be used as a highlighter, blush, eye shadow, mixed in or underneath your foundation. Glow Pigments has only five ingredients!


Tai-Lite Beauty is a skincare-based beauty brand committed to bringing you expressive, colorful makeup that promotes healthy glowing skin. Their products are suitable for all skin types and tones. As Tai puts it, "Tai-Lite Beauty is your Fairytale Beauty Experience."


Congratulations ladies from the BGV Family!



Subscribe to the Digital Orange Juice for juicy ideas and the people who fund them. You can find out about our next pitch competitions here. Also, be sure to join our new community BGV Connect!

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