WELCOME, BABE!
Well, hello there! Cheers to you for carving out the time to learn more about Eat Me Guilt Free's female entrepreneurship grant: You Glow Girl! We launched the program in 2021 to support one fortunate femme in taking her business to the next level and now, the program is growing and glowing. 2023 will be our THIRD time offering the grant and we are so excited to continue to build this incredible community of boss babes.
LET US INTRODUCE OURSELVES
For those of you that are new to the brand, welcome to the family! For those of you that have been following us for a while, then you know how much this grant means to us and to Cristie Besu, our founder and CEO. Cristie has been making drool-worthy, guilt-free treats for more than five years. As a mother of three and a business owner, she made significant sacrifices to launch her brand, having first-hand experience of the hardships and barriers that limit many female entrepreneurs from succeeding. As a result of her personal experience, Cristie developed this grant to pay it forward to the next generation of female entrepreneurs ready to live out their business dreams.
Our 2021 You Glow Girl winner Amanda Sheridan, founder of BagValet, is doing big things! Since winning the grand prize in the summer of 2021 Amanda has been hard at work in her mentorship with Cristie to expand her business outside of Charleston, South Carolina to new cities across the US. She has invested in her technology, grown her team - all while being a mom of 3! She entered a pitch contest with The US Women's Entrepreneurship Cooperative (USAWEC) launched by The Center for Global Enterprise & won! She was also admitted into Forbes Next 1000 class of 2021. Read all about Amanda and her business here.
In 2022, we awarded the You Glow Girl grant to the PAIR of female co-founders behind Fourplay, Julie Griggs and Danielle Dietzek. As single, healthcare providers in New York City, these best friends are revolutionizing socializing with other singles. With little free time on their hands, they wanted to be able to go out and have fun with each other while also dipping their toes in the NYC dating scene. The answer? Fourplay - a social networking app that enables singles to team up with a friend and “match” with other pairs. It’s a more fun, less awkward, and much safer way to date. Fourplay is currently available in New York City but is expanding to new cities soon! Cristie is so excited to dig deep with them in the coming months in their mentorship portion of the grand prize!
THE 411 ON THE GRANT
What sets You Glow Girl apart from other business grants you might come across is all in the secret sauce of the grand prize package. We’re looking to support one glow-getter not only financially but physically, emotionally and spiritually as well. It is Cristie’s belief that business owners, particularly women and “mom-prenuers” can’t bring their best to their business without also filling their own cup! Both our 2021 and 2022 iterations of the grand prize included the following:
- A $10k cash award to help propel her business forward
- A one-year supply of Eat Me Guilt Free products to keep a girl fueled on the hustle
- A physical health & wellness prize (in 2021 it was a Peloton bike and in 2022 a one-year subscription to Class Pass!) to help her reach her fitness goals
- An intensive mentorship program with Cristie
And in 2022 we even introduced a mental and spiritual health portion of the prize - 12 monthly mental health check-ins with a licensed professional and a one-year subscription to Calm so she can bring a clear mind & heart to each & every day as she builds her team. In 2023, we’re going to continue to UPGRADE - stay tuned!
READY TO GLOW UP?
We know you CEOs are busy so put this date on your calendar: October 19, 2023! This is when the application period will open but we’ll sneak peek some of the elements of the 2023 grant on our social before then. Finally, bookmark this page and be sure to join our mailing list below to stay in-the-know about other special products, resources, events and opportunities for women entrepreneurs!
We have been blown away by the response to You Glow Girl two years in a row! In 2022, we saw an almost 500% increase in applicants and we hope to reach even more women in 2023! We’re continually inspired by all of you women out there taking the bold leap to start your own businesses. The grant will be back and better than ever in February 2023 accepting new (& old) applicants!