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Gabriel Macht on growing Bear Fight worldwide
Best known for his starring role in Suits, Gabriel Macht’s days of drinking Scotch as the fictional lawyer have led him to a new career path with Bear Fight Whiskey.
Macht, the Suits star better known as attorney Harvey Specter, joined American whiskey brand Bear Fight in October as a creative partner and stakeholder.
The move marks the American actor’s first venture into the spirits industry. Bear Fight is produced by Next Century Spirits and backed by Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane.
Explaining his decision to join Bear Fight, Macht says he was introduced to the brand and Next Century Spirits about 18 months ago.
“I really admired the goals of the company and the brand,” he says. “I have experience with whisky in my 20s and 30s, and the character I played on Suits was known for his top-shelf whisky.”
He also says it “made sense” to enter the whiskey sector as his “second career” after acting, which Macht has taken a pause from to spend more time with his family. Macht is married to fellow actor and former model Jacinda Barrett, who he has two children with.
Macht sought a different career path where he could continue to be creative.
“I’ve always been a person that speaks the words from someone else,” he says of his past ventures. “I wanted to be a creator in the messaging. That’s what’s been exciting in this last period, where we have come up with the message for Bear Fight. I felt this was a total disruptor, we wanted to play with the idea of whiskey – it can be a bunch of different things.”
In early 2025, Macht will star in the first advertising campaign for the whiskey brand, which will focus on the question: ‘What’s your Bear Fight?’
“We wanted to break down this idea that it’s testosterone-driven,” Macht explains of the idea behind the campaign, which is about dealing with challenges and taking a risk. He cites learning to play the guitar for two hours a week as an example.
“We’re trying to create, what are you going through at the moment, what are you connecting on? What are your challenges on your to-do list? Completing a creative project, learning how to work out when your nine-week-old puppy needs the bathroom, it’s the little things.”
‘Disrupting’ the category
Macht believes Bear Fight is disruptive and challenges the category’s traditional image.
“We make it light and approachable,” he notes, adding Bear Fight sits at an affordable price point of US$30. “You’re going to see us not taking ourselves too seriously, it’s about more playful connectivity. It will resonate with everyone.”
Macht says whisky has “always” been a part of his life, from seeing his great-grandfather drinking it to his move to New York during his late 20s, where he was introduced to brands such as Maker’s Mark and Knob Creek.
“And then over the years, the character of Harvey Specter became synonymous with whisky,” Macht reflected. His starring role on Suits from 2011 to 2019 often saw Specter, an assertive senior partner in a fictional New York law firm, enjoying a glass of whisky when celebrating cases.
“If he was enjoying a success, he would break into a bottle,” Macht reminisces of his character, who often indulged in The Macallan 18. It was a moment of “healthy reflection”, he adds.
Macht’s interest in whisky was further heightened when he embarked on a train journey across Scotland where he was given a “complete education in Scottish whisky for eight days straight”.
“When Bear Fight came along, it made sense for me – I enjoy this category. More importantly it was a way for me to get creative in growing this brand,” he adds.
Macht asserts that he is fully focused on driving growth of Bear Fight for the long term.
He continues: “In the next few months, I have a couple of things going on, one of them is brand ambassadorships for a few different products. My heart is 100% in [Bear Fight] in terms of growing the business and being a part of it from the beginning. I’m locked into this partnership for the long haul. This is where a lot of my creativity and my attention is focused right now.”
Currently Bear Fight is available in 27 US states and online. Macht wants to see it get into all 50 states and expand worldwide. “I’d like to grow it and connect with people,” he explains.
Macht has not ruled out returning to the entertainment industry if the right opportunity comes along. But for now, he assures, Bear Fight is “where my focus will be, other than my family”.
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