With deep sadness in our hearts, we announce that on Wednesday, January 17, 2024, the founder of our companies KARLOFF and TATRANSKÁ LIKÉRKA, Ing. Ján Semaňák, passed away.
We are grateful to him for building a brand of global proportions, which is known in many corners of the world thanks to his hard work, tenacity and above all thanks to his open mind.
His TATRATEA won a huge number of awards for design and taste, but especially the hearts of customers.
He was inspired by Slovak traditions, innovated them with his own ideas and built one of the most successful Slovak family businesses.
He lived his life to the fullest, always being generous, creative and caring.
As he used to say, he was driven forward by the desire to leave behind something special, unique, which would survive him… And he certainly succeeded in doing so.
The last farewell will be on January 22, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. in the House of Mourning at the New Cementery in Kežmarok.
Ján was born on May 25, 1964 in Kežmarok. He had 8 siblings.
He graduated from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the Technical University in Košice.
In 1986, he married his wife Mária. He had 3 children, daughter Stella, and sons Erik and Leonard.
After school, he worked in management positions and later ran businesses in several industries.
He founded the company KARLOFF in 2002 and left it to his children Erik and Stella couple of years ago.
In the last years of his life, he devoted himself to his passion for books and founded a publishing house.
He will be greatly missed…