This summer, Juris Brokāns returned to Riga after spending ten years in Austria and the Netherlands. His professional experience spans two seemingly different fields: yoga and working at international airports. Now, he has added entrepreneurship in the digital environment to his career.
Before leaving Latvia, Juris worked at Riga Airport and practised yoga in his free time. There, he met instructors who helped him gain a deeper understanding of this ancient Indian practice of developing the body and mind. His interest continued to grow, and before moving to Austria, Juris travelled to India, where he spent two months expanding his knowledge and deepening his practice.
The experience he gained in India opened the door to the international yoga community. After moving to Vienna, Juris successfully became part of the local yoga community, taught classes and worked at Vienna International Airport.
“Vienna had a wonderful atmosphere and a very supportive, welcoming yoga community. I gained fantastic experience there, and I really loved Vienna,” Juris recalls. “Then the COVID-19 pandemic began. The yoga studio temporarily closed, airport operations slowed down, and finding work became more difficult. After five wonderful years in Vienna, I moved to the Netherlands, where I worked in various jobs, including sorting and order picking.”
Both while living abroad and after returning to Riga, Juris has maintained contact with Latvians around the world. He continues to be part of the team behind the Facebook platform “Tauta”, interviewing people and helping Latvians maintain their connections with one another. His experience with social media has also inspired him to establish his own business.
Juris moved back to Riga on 5 August this year. He has founded SIA “StarBridge Creator Network”, a company operating in several areas. One of its main activities is supporting TikTok LIVE content creators in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Malta. In addition, Juris offers Vedic astrology consultations and helps businesses with marketing and visual solutions, as well as integrating artificial intelligence into their everyday operations.
“I communicate directly with TikTok representatives. I take part in their online meetings and training sessions, which help me develop my business plans. Through my work with ‘Tauta’, I also discovered something of a sense of mission: talking to people, understanding their needs and looking for solutions,” says Juris.
He invites TikTok content creators in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Malta to contact him privately to find out more about potential collaboration opportunities. Juris is also happy to answer questions about TikTok LIVE and the platform's guidelines.
Alongside his business activities, Juris hopes to continue practising yoga and teaching classes. Bikram yoga, practised in temperatures of approximately 40°C and 40% humidity, is particularly rewarding for him.
“I never felt like a stranger abroad. I was welcomed, and I was very fortunate to meet wonderful people both in Vienna and in the Netherlands. Nevertheless, the feeling that Latvia is my home has always remained with me,” says Juris. “It is important to me to be here, together with my own people. I feel good in Riga, and my plan is to work and stay here. To fellow Latvians who are considering returning home, I would say: save the money you earn abroad so that you can start your own business or fulfil other dreams in Latvia.”
Translated with ChatGPT