One of the largest Ukrainian tour operators, Join UP!, is preparing to launch operations in Slovakia and the Czech Republic from the winter season, said Kateryna Artiukh, Head of Product Marketing at Join UP!, in an interview with the Interfax-Ukraine agency.

"Our immediate plans include opening companies in Slovakia and the Czech Republic and launching operations from the winter season. Next, in our scaling strategy, we are considering the northern regions of Europe," she said.

The company also plans to step up the development of the Join UP! to travel franchise network of travel agencies. More than 130 franchise agencies have already been operating under this brand in Ukraine, since 2017, they have been represented in Moldova, and just a few months ago, the first one was opened in Poland (Katowice).

Today, the Join UP! brand is represented in eight markets: Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Romania, Poland, Moldova, and Kazakhstan.

According to Artiukh, in each of the countries of presence, the majority of clients are local.

"In the Baltic countries, in particular, a very low percentage of Ukrainian tourists fly out, so among the clients here, more than 90% are local. In the Polish branch, Poles clearly dominate - more than 65%. However, in Rzeszow - 90% are Ukrainians. We have special partnership conditions with this airport specifically for Ukrainian tourists. That is, each of our steps clearly expands the options for Ukrainian tourists, and this is important, and we are developing as a local tour operator in all markets of presence, developing each market for the local target audience," she said.

The expert specified that the organization of flights is also planned taking into account local specifics.

"For example, the vast majority of flights from Chisinau are operated by our partner, the Moldovan airline FlyOne. In Kazakhstan, where we have been represented since 2022, we cooperate with Air Astana. If we talk about strategic partnership, then, of course, number one is Sky UP, Turkish-based Pegasus and Turkish Airlines, as well as Wizzair," Artiukh said.

Join UP! LLC was established in 2013, its charter capital is UAH 72.671 million. The ultimate beneficiaries are Yuriy and Oleksandr Alba. In 2023, revenue increased to UAH 16.639 million, which is 2.3 times higher than the results of 2022. At the same time, the company received a net loss of UAH 234.120 million, which was 1.8 times higher than UAH 129.486 million a year earlier.