London-based Filipino immigrant Jay Alexander Tseng has been in the business of making people shine — literally and figuratively — for years. From running a jewelry boutique in London to producing concerts and events for the large Filipino community across the United Kingdom, Tseng knows how to capture the limelight.
Filipino businessman Jay Alexander Tseng, longtime owner of jewelry boutique Alroida London Limited, is now a bonafide pageant director as organizer of a first of its kind beauty pageant in the UK.
This November, however, his latest endeavor might be his most glittering yet. Tseng is set to mount the first-ever Miss Philippines-Great Britain (MPGB) pageant, a contest that aims to put Filipino-British beauties on the global stage.
The rise of Filipino community pageants across the UK inspired Tseng to create a more substantial and mainstream beauty pageant that will serve as a springboard for talented, intelligent and standout Filipino-British young women to forge careers in modeling and entertainment, be it in the UK or even here in the Philippines.
“There are loads of Filipino community pageants in the UK, but they’re more [focused] on charity and money-making [for community projects],” Tseng explained during his latest visit to Manila in early October.
Myca Winmill, one of the official candidates of MPGB, has a British father and Filipino mother who hails from Pampanga.
The idea to venture into pageantry was a natural progression from his company, Alrodia Enterprise, which has long been organizing concerts and Filipino events such as Barrio Fiestas and charity galas.
“Actually, all we really wanted to do was to find a new model for my jewelry store, but the plans just got bigger and bigger.”
As Tseng and his team traveled from city to city across the UK to hold auditions for MPGB, they kept getting requests from applicants to help them secure a spot in the next Miss Universe-Great Britain pageant. He reckoned these ladies were inspired by reigning Miss Universe-Great Britain Christina dela Cruz Chalk, who is half-Filipina.
“Of course, we all know Christina first competed in the Miss Universe-Philippines pageant and didn’t win the crown, but since Filipinos really take pageantry seriously, she beat everyone else when she joined Miss Universe-Great Britain,” Tseng chuckled.
According to the MPGB producer, Chalk, who will officially represent the UK in this year’s Miss Universe pageant (also set for November), has clearly given pageant hopefuls with Filipino roots over there a promising map to follow towards vying for the world’s most prestigious crown.
“To make things easier for them, I found a way to connect with the Miss Universe franchise holder in the UK, and since she liked the MPGP concept so much, she promised to take in the top three winners who will emerge from our pageant as candidates to Miss Universe-Great Britain 2025,” Tseng excitedly shared the good news.
He admits, however, that mounting a legitimate beauty pageant is far from easy.
“It’s very, very challenging. It involves a lot of time, a lot of effort, a lot of hard work and a lot of money, but we’re committed to seeing it through.”
The first Miss Philippines-Great Britain pageant is, therefore, green and go and is set to unfold on November 16 at the prestigious Royal National Hotel in London. It’s been gaining momentum over the last several months, thanks to Tseng’s well-placed connections in media and entertainment in England and the Philippines, and in fact, already lists TFC’s (The Filipino Channel) Europe bureau chief Rose Eclarinal and the ever-iconic showbiz personality Annabelle Rama to be among a stellar lineup of judges.
“Tita Annabelle and I have been friends for a long time, and she’s been telling me she wants to do a project in London. Since she doesn’t sing, I told her, ‘OK, just be a judge in MPGB’,” he laughed.
Joking aside, Tseng believes the feisty veteran talent manager and famous celebrity mom will elevate the much-awaited event.
Meanwhile, joining Tseng at the same interview was one of MPGB’s nine official candidates, the lovely Myca Winmill. Born to a British father and a Filipino mother who hails from Pampanga, Myca represents the city of Essex in England and has flown to Manila to train under the acclaimed Aces & Queens pageant camp.
“She’s doing this as a personal effort and paying for her lodging and lessons while she’s here,” Tseng said of Myca. “So you can tell she’s really committed to the pageant, which was so important for us when we were auditioning candidates.”
For Myca, the appeal of pageantry lies in the opportunities and sisterhood it fosters.
“I’ve always wanted to join a beauty pageant,” said the mestiza beauty, who is devoting her gap year before going into preparatory school for college to MPGB. “I did some modeling when I was 13 or 14, but that’s the only experience I’ve had so far.”
Myca — who feels a strong connection to her Filipino roots thanks to her mom’s warm and caring ways — further shared that her dream is to join the entertainment industry like her idol, Filipino Miss Universe winner Catriona Gray, whose career she closely follows.
Now, if she wins the first MPGB crown, Myca’s dreams are bound to come true, for besides a guaranteed slot to compete in next year’s Miss Universe-Great Britain and a hefty prize money, she will also land a bonafide management contract with Tseng’s Alroida Enterprises.
“If the winner would like to pursue a career in the UK or the Philippines, we will be her guide, take care of her and make sure she succeeds,” Tseng promised.
Looking further ahead, the newest pageant director envisions a future where every city in Great Britain has its own MPGB contest, with the emerging winners competing at the national level. Ultimately, his goal is to give Filipino-British women a platform not only to showcase their beauty and talent but also to help them achieve lasting careers in modeling, entertainment and beyond.
“It’s not just about winning a crown,” Tseng reflected. “It’s about opening doors and building a community that supports Filipino talent on a global scale. And we’re just getting started.”
So long as Jay Alexander Tseng is true to his word, then the future truly looks bright for generations of promising British-Filipino women to come.
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