Inspiring Latvian Trio Become Ambassadors of the Jameson and QooQoo Collaboration Collection
At the end of last year, Irish whiskey Jameson and homegrown fashion brand QooQoo joined creative forces to launch a specially designed collection of clothing and accessories for men. Its succinct name, “Fearless”, embodies the contemporary and courageous image of men who are not afraid to take risks and reach new heights in their everyday lives. This year, continuing to develop the idea of “Fearless” and take it further into the world, three successful professionals in their respective fields were aptly chosen as ambassadors of the limited-edition collection – the charming actor Āris Matesovičs, the passionate entrepreneur Ernests Štāls and the award-winning bartender Oskars Smilga – whose courage has been captured in inspiring campaign photo and video stories.
Many first got to know actor Āris Matesovičs from the popular Latvian television series “UgunsGrēks”, in which he played the likeable Kaspars, while in everyday life he can be seen in the most popular productions at Dirty Deal Teatro and the New Riga Theatre, or riding his motorcycle. Āris will soon also make his debut on the big screen in the feature film “Blakus”, once again proving that fortune favours the brave. The stylish actor perfectly embodies the Jameson and new clothing collection’s motto, “Fearless” – in 2018, his willingness to take risks earned him a nomination for the “Spēlmaņu nakts” theatre award in the category “Young Stage Artist of the Year”. Āris knows that every new role, new stage and new beginning is difficult, but the most important thing is to believe in the idea and not be afraid to take risks.
Innovative entrepreneur and pioneer of Latvia’s start-up sector Ernests Štāls is known as the founder of several successful technology start-ups and one of the initiators of the Tech Hub Riga start-up community. He is currently devoting his creative energy to the marketing-tool evaluation platform “Dripit.io”. For more than 10 years, Ernests has been an active expert in new technologies and an inspiring speaker whose talks have been heard by several thousand people at events such as “iNovuss”, “TechChill”, “Panākumu Skola” and “Starta Diena”. He is not afraid to admit that great success also conceals many failures, so the most important thing is not to give up and to keep moving only forward.
By contrast, agile drinks enthusiast Oskars Smilga is well known among cocktail professionals – as the bartender at the popular Mākonis Cocktail & Design bar, he has won countless competitions in Latvia and far beyond its borders, proving that those who dare are the ones who triumph. Oskars knows how to appreciate high-quality drinks, so his collaboration with Jameson is only natural. He lives by the conviction that preparing a drink is a great responsibility every time, because a bartender must know how to surprise, delight and always hit the mark. Only the bravest are capable of going one step further and telling an entire story through a cocktail.
“Sine Metu”, or “Fearless” in Latvian, has been Jameson’s motto for decades. According to legend, it was once attributed to the Jameson family for their courage in fighting pirates, but it has now become a source of inspiration for the striking fashion brand QooQoo. The powerful and inspiring slogan, rendered in the distinctive handwriting of QooQoo designer Aļona Bauska, adorns the unique men’s pieces in the collaboration collection: sweatshirts, T-shirts, caps and socks. The creative work of the two brands combines both the daring and quality characteristic of Jameson and QooQoo’s original, always eye-catching style, vividly embodied by the campaign ambassadors as well. The limited-edition collection is currently available at the QooQoo store and showroom at 3 Zirgu Street in Riga, as well as in the brand’s online store: https://beqooqoo.com/collections/all/bezbailem.
