Ukrainian tour operator Join UP! plans to launch franchising in the Baltic States and Kazakhstan in 2024, according to Marina Dayneko, head of the Join UP! sales office, in an interview with the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
“Currently, more than 100 agencies are operating under this model in Ukraine, and four in Moldova, two of which opened this year. We are continuing to develop franchising in Poland and are currently signing agreements with both Polish and Ukrainian partners. This year, we are launching franchising in Kazakhstan and the Baltic states,” she said.
As reported, the travel company Join UP! LLC was established in 2013 with a registered capital of UAH 72.671 million. The ultimate beneficiaries are Yuriy and Oleksandr Alby. According to the OpenDataBot service, at the end of 2024, the tour operator’s revenue decreased to UAH 376,000 from UAH 16,639,000 in 2023, and its net loss decreased to UAH 217,451,000 from UAH 233,341,000, respectively.
The brand’s international expansion covers eight markets: the Baltic states, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Poland, Romania, and the Czech Republic. Preparations are underway to launch operations in Slovakia and Hungary. Last year, the brand also opened its first franchise agency on the international market in Katowice, Poland.
The hotel operator Ribas Hotels Group (Odesa) is launching a franchise program for the development of a chain of apart-hotels by Ribas in partnership with developers.
“As part of the partnership, the Ribas Hotels chain transfers all its technical standards and design projects to development companies, accompanies their design and construction departments and strengthens the marketing and sales department,” Ribas Hotels Group told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to the terms of the partnership, after commissioning, the hotel is transferred to the management of the Ribas Hotels Group. The sale of apartments is carried out during the construction of the object. The profitability from operating activities of hotels is estimated at 8-20% per annum.
According to the operator, the first apart-hotel of the WOL sub-brand, which will be further sold under a franchise, will open at 121 Fontanska Road Street in Odesa in February 2022.
According to Ribas, in 2022 the chain will be replenished with two more apart-hotels in Odesa and Lviv. At the same time, the company has not yet disclosed developer partners in these projects.
“Taking into account the market demand, the hotel operator plans to create only ten investment projects of apart-hotels in different regions of Ukraine,” Ribas Hotels Group said.
Ribas Hotels Group cooperates (management, franchising and booking) with 25 objects of the hotel and restaurant complex (city, beach and ski hotels). The company’s portfolio includes the business hotels Wall Street by Ribas and Bossfor by Ribas (Odesa), the ski hotel Ribas Karpaty (Bukovel, Ivano-Frankivsk region), the beach complex Richard by Ribas (Hrybovka, Odesa region). Hotels in Lviv, Kyiv, Odesa, and also in Poland are currently at the design and construction stage.
The total number of rooms in the network exceeds 1,000 in various forms of cooperation in eight cities and resort locations of Ukraine.
Ribas Hotels Group LLC was established in 2017. According to the data of the unified state register of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs, Artur Lupashko is the head and owner of a 100% share in the charter capital of the company.
