World Class Beauty Queens Magazine would like to welcome amazing Queen Niza Oun-Nguyen Mrs. Asia USA 2019-2020.
Full name: Niza Oun-Nguyen Title/Year: Mrs. Asia USA 2019-2020 Pageant System: Mrs. Asia USA (Virgelia Productions) Age: 35 Zodiac sign: Capricorn Hobbies: Travel, dance, food adventures, reading, wine tastings Platform: Education and mentorship for young children. I created an online blog and Youtube channel, Aspire to Bee, that is dedicated to raising career awareness by introducing a variety of careers, schools, and companies to young children. Years competed: 1 (This was the first and only time I have ever competed) Countries visited: Canada, Mexico, England, France, Italy, Spain, Greece, China, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia, Hong Kong. Likes: reading, traveling, food adventures, wine tastings Dislikes: olives, goat cheese, and people who flake or make false promises Status: Married with 3 children World Class Beauty Queens: Please tell us about yourself. I am blessed to be happily married with three beautiful daughters. I currently serve as Vice President at BNY Wealth Management. Outside of my day-to-day career, I follow my entrepreneurial spirit. I am the Founder and Creator of Aspire to Bee, a YouTube channel and blog that she has designed to introduce young people to careers, schools, and companies. As part of the same brand, I have written an Aspire to Bee book, inviting children to explore careers through a fun, rhyming narrative. World Class Beauty Queens: What does women Empowerment means to you? Women empowerment means a female movement and commitment to support, mentor, and inspire other women around you. Empowering young girls and women is essential in building stronger and safer environments for future generations. Women empowerment enables women to make independent decisions without fear and freely express their beliefs. World Class Beauty Queens: Tell us about your pageant history. Prior to winning the Mrs. Asia USA 2019 title, I had never competed in a pageant before. This was my first experience! World Class Beauty Queens: What inspired you to do your first pageant? As a daughter of Cambodian immigrants, I wanted to inspire and empower others in my community. Only half of Cambodian-Americans in the United States receive a high school degree, 14 percent go on to receive a bachelors degree, and less than 2 percent pursue a post-graduate degree. No Cambodian delegate has ever won the title of Mrs. Asia USA so I felt a responsibility to represent my country and inspire hope among other Cambodian women. World Class Beauty Queens: Why did you choose to compete for your current title? I felt motivated to compete for the Mrs. Asia USA title after giving birth to my third daughter. I wanted to show other married women and mothers that they can feel beautiful, confident, and empowered no matter their age. There is a beautiful support system with other women like myself that is juggling life as a wife, mom, full-time employee, philanthropist, etc. World Class Beauty Queens: To those unfamiliar with your pageant system please tell us what is it about? To celebrate heritage, culture, and women who want to empower others and inspire change in their local communities. World Class Beauty Queens: What are you being judged on during the competition? Confidence, grace, elegance, creativity, and leadership. World Class Beauty Queens: Tell us about your experience during the competition. There is a lot of preparation and rehearsals involved. I spent months with my team on the details related to national costume, evening gown, swimsuit, makeup and hair, etc. In addition, the delegates and I spent months practicing our catwalk and group dance choreography. While I felt some stress on some days leading up to the pageant, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and have made some lifelong friends through this experience. World Class Beauty Queens: Tell us about your platform or what cause do you volunteer for. A strong believer in formal education and mentorship, I want to mentor young adults and children that come from humble beginnings just like myself. I aim to connect them with the appropriate resources and tools that will enable them to be more successful. World Class Beauty Queens: What appearances have you done with your title? International American University – Holiday Luncheon Women of Elegance Hollywood Global Film Festival Vietnamese Lunar New Year Tet Festival & Parade Royal Appreciate Gala & Dinner World Class Beauty Queens: What are some of your achievements? I am the daughter of Cambodian refugees. My parents fled Cambodia in the 1970s when the Khmer Rouge regime took over and executed over two million of its own people. My parents were fortunate to survive but assimilating to the U.S. culture was challenging because they arrived to the United States broke and traumatized. They spoke no English, had no family nearby, and spoke no English. However, my parents were resilient and we managed to get through life with very little. Our struggles shaped our character and motivated us to do better. I channeled my energy into school and I’m proud to share today that I have two Masters degrees (MBA in Finance and MS Entrepreneurship) from Pepperdine University, a bachelor degree in International-Studies Economics from UCSD, and a CPWA® designation from the Investments & Wealth Institute through the Yale School of Management. World Class Beauty Queens: What makes you stand out from all those other beautiful girls? Being confident in my own skin. I’ve learned to embrace and celebrate every blemish and flaw on my body – every one of them has its own story and shaped who I am today. World Class Beauty Queens: Tell us about the moment your name was called out as the winner. I was in complete shock. The audience erupted in roar and cheers – it was one of the most exhilarating experiences in my life. What an honor it was! World Class Beauty Queens: What does it mean to you to be a Beauty Queen? To inspire change and empower other women who didn’t think they were good enough. Every women deserves to feel beautiful and powerful. World Class Beauty Queens: How did competing in pageants helped your life? I’ve had the pleasure of meeting wonderful people throughout the experience. Many of them will be my lifelong mentors, friends, or business partners. World Class Beauty Queens: How did pageants helped your selfesteem and body image? I feel more confident and secure than I’ve ever been. It’s a great feeling! World Class Beauty Queens: You are an inspiration to all the girls out there. How does it feel? I feel honored. I want to be that mentor that I needed as a young girl. I can relate to so many young girls who are facing obstacles in their lives. But they don’t have to stay in that hole forever. They can change course with the right mindset, attitude, and mentorship. World Class Beauty Queens: What is your on stage strategy to win the judges over? Portrayig confidence in your catwalk, making eye contact with audience and judges, smiling, and large audience support. World Class Beauty Queens: How did you prepare for your competition? I put all of the pageant rehearsals, workshops, and meet-ups on my calendar to keep me organized. I practiced the catwalk and group dance in between rehearsals. I also communicated with my glam team often to ensure we were all on the same page. World Class Beauty Queens: What are your tips for learning better pageant walk? We had one of the best runway coaches ever, Javier Ortega. He really cares about improving our pageant walk which in turn improves our confidence and self-esteem. I advise anyone considering being a pageant to connect with a runway coach – you won’t be disappointed. World Class Beauty Queens: What are your tips for choosing right pageant dress? The pageant dress must stand out but you must also feel comfortable and confident in the dress. It has to be creative and expresses who you are as a delegate. Have fun with your pageant dress! World Class Beauty Queens: What are your tips for winning interview? Preparation and practice. It’s important to prepare early so you do not stress out at the last minute. Also practice in between rehearsals so that the rehearsals will be more efficient and productive. World Class Beauty Queens: What is one mistake that you've done during competing you wish you could redo and fix it? I probably would have taken one or two days off of work during the week of the pageant so that I could mentally prepare without the extra stress. World Class Beauty Queens: What other mistakes are made by girls during the contest? I can’t speak for all of the delegates. But one of the common mistakes I saw with a few of the delegates was waiting until the last minute to ask for business sponsorships or extending invitations to their guests. It’ll help alleviate the stress and anxiety if you reach out to your communities months before the pageant. World Class Beauty Queens: Any modeling or acting experience? I had done some modeling and acting gigs when I was 13 years old. Goodness, that was decades ago! World Class Beauty Queens: What are your plans for 2020 as a Queen? Participate and volunteer in more non-profit activities Mentor young children in under-served communities Improve my speaking skills in my native language, Khmer (official language of Cambodia) Your Director: Virgelia Villegas Pageant website: www.virgeliaproductions.com
World Class Beauty Queens Magazine would like to say thank you for this amazing interview.
Niza Oun-Nguyen Mrs. Asia USA 2019-2020, World Class Beauty Queens Magazine, Photo by Act Vinai of v9creative, Stylist: The Phukaw Makeup and Hair: Chanokporn Pumpruck
Interview by Derek Tokarzewski Owner/Editor in Chief Mr United Nations 2018 Platform: Women Empowerment Ambassador to International Foundation for Orphans iffocares.org
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