Hey there from Poprad — at the foot of the High Tatras, where mornings are already freezing and the snowline is sliding lower by the day. I’ve switched back to winter tyres and I’m firmly in “season mode” with Jasná opening at the end of the month.

On my recent trip to the UK, I had the winter tyres fitted at Tesla in Norwich and picked up a new pair of Nordica ski boots from Ski Exchange in Cambridge — a nice return to my East of England roots — before driving back through the Arlberg and up to the Stubai Glacier:

Back in May, I wrote about why UK and EU ski brands should be paying far closer attention to Slovakia — particularly the quiet but accelerating transformation of the High Tatras.

Forbes Slovakia may have just published the most detailed confirmation yet.

Their July cover feature — a 10-page deep dive on Igor Rattaj, chairman of Tatry Mountain Resorts (TMR) — reads like a masterclass in how Central European mountain destinations are preparing for the next decade of competition.

And if you’re in the ski trade — whether selling equipment, building partnerships, or scouting new markets — it’s essential reading.

Here’s what matters.

TMR Is Quietly Becoming a Central European Super-Operator

The Forbes article makes one thing absolutely clear:

Slovakia is no longer a “budget ski” outlier.

It’s becoming a vertically integrated mountain tourism business — with TMR at the centre.

Rattaj openly states that the 2023/24 season will be one of their highest-margin years on record, with EBITDA climbing fast after the post-pandemic slump. And the new strategic direction is simple:

• push higher yield per visitor

• grow international traffic

• unify pricing with Alpine norms

• expand the Gopass ecosystem across borders

This is not a company thinking small.

The New Tatras Playbook: Premiumisation, Scale, and Data

Three themes appear again and again in the interview.

1. Premiumisation is strategic, not accidental

Rattaj is blunt: skiing everywhere is more expensive, and Slovakia is aligning with the broader Alpine market.

Their goal is not low-cost volume.

It’s higher-spend, year-round guests.

2. International diversification is deliberate

TMR is now operating across:

• Slovakia

• Czech Republic

• Poland

• Austria

Not all expansions worked — Forbes grills Rattaj hard on failures in Poland and bureaucratic misery in Špindlerův Mlýn — but the ambition stands.

For UK brands, this matters:

Slovakia isn’t “one market.” It’s part of a Central European ski corridor.

3. Gopass is the engine

The article frames Gopass as TMR’s biggest competitive advantage.

It powers:

• loyalty

• pricing

• segmentation

• on-mountain spend

• hotel funnels

• cross-resort data sharing

In the ski industry, whoever owns the digital relationship owns the margin.

TMR understands this better than most Alpine resorts.

I already have my season pass with Gopass prepaid.

Slovakia’s Weakness: Regulation and Conservation Battles

The most striking part of the Forbes interview is Rattaj’s frustration with planning restrictions.

He claims:

• Slovak national park rules are tighter than Austria

• key resort expansions are blocked

• environmental activism slows even basic upgrades

• many investment timelines are “measured in decades”

It’s a tension UK ski operators should watch closely.

Slovakia wants to grow — but governance often slows execution.

Yet TMR’s answer is to look outward: Poland, Czechia, Austria, and even Saudi Arabia (yes, they’re in talks).

This outward push suggests they’re hedging the regulatory limits at home.

Labour Shortages Are Reshaping the Visitor Experience

One section of the Forbes piece hits a nerve:

Slovakia simply doesn’t have enough skilled workers in the mountains.

TMR is hiring across Europe and even Asia to fill roles once staffed locally.

For UK readers, this mirrors the post-Brexit staffing challenges in Scottish and French resorts.

Expect:

• more multilingual on-site staff

• rising wage costs

• tighter service models

• more automation (Gopass, kiosks, mobile check-in)

The Tatras are modernising out of necessity.

Why This Matters for the UK Ski Trade

Here’s the real takeaway for the UK market:

Slovakia is entering its “Austria-in-the-90s” phase — moving from regional underdog to modern, investable ski economy.

What TMR is building looks less like a local operator and more like a multi-resort Alpine conglomerate.

For UK brands, operators, and distributors, this means:

• bigger partnership opportunities

• a rising middle-class Central European customer base

• a serious year-round mountain economy

• new premium positioning in the Tatras

• a digital ecosystem (Gopass) ready for integrations

If you read only one line from the Forbes piece, make it this:

That’s it for now, catch you in the next issue.

Richard (formerly of Snowbistro.com).

Follow me on Instagram at @richardpatey on X at @SkiSlovakia,