Bert and T’s Desserts wins $10,000 in local business pitch competition

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - It’s a sweet victory for a Lowcountry entrepreneur.

Christina Miller, the owner of Bert and T’s Desserts, won the top prize of $10,000 in the Ready, Set, Pitch competition Saturday, sponsored by Lowcountry Local First.

Bert and T’s, named for Miller’s grandmothers, is an online bakery specializing in southern and Gullah desserts and ice creams. She will use the prize money toward the purchase of a food truck to take her desserts on the road.

Miller was one of five people who participated in the inaugural Ready, Set, Pitch contest. The participants were all students of the Community Business Academy, which is run by Good Enterprises, an initiative of Lowcountry Local First. The Community Business Academy is a 12-week program.

You may have seen Miller as she appeared on Bounce Around Charleston, which airs Saturday and Sunday morning’s on Live 5′s sister station Bounce.

The top five entrepreneurs in the Ready, Set, Pitch competition received private, one-on-one coaching from local business leader and philanthropist Herbert Drayton III (Vertical Holdings, HI Mark Capital). The finalists participated Saturday in a live pitch event at Cannon Street Arts Center in front of family, friends and a panel of judges.

The top five competing entrepreneurs included:

Rashaunda Grant, Carolina Cookery

Kristine Luke, Park Pets

Christina Miller, Bert & T’s Desserts

Kimberly Nesmith, Kakes by Kim

Chinenyem Nwadiugwu, She Biology

“Lowcountry Local First believes that entrepreneurship is a powerful engine for community change and is committed to seeing these new businesses receive the attention and investment they deserve,” Good Enterprises Program Director, Raquel Padgett said.

“This pitch event gave CBA graduates the opportunity to share their stories and vision, with a panel of judges selecting one talented and driven individual to receive meaningful help take their business to the next level,” Padgett said.

The next Community Business Academy begins in February. To learn more click the link.

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