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Fortified Forte family ready to double portfolio

The U.K.’s famed Forte hotel family is writing its next chapter with Sir Rocco Forte reenergized, working alongside his three children and planning the opening of five new luxury properties, predominantly in Italy, in the next two years.

“We’ve been quite proactive in the last 18 months,” Forte told HOTELS in a phone interview late last week. “I’ve significantly strengthened my management capabilities at Rocco Forte Hotels. We’ve grown our central team with a strong operations director. He’s built a team around him and we’re now in a position to take on a lot more hotels (predominantly via long-term leases).”

Forte said he could probably double the number of hotels, currently at 11, over the next five years without significantly increasing central overhead. “We’re geared up for expansion and that’s what I’m going to focus on over the next two or three years,” he said.

The 22-year-old, London-based group’s first new openings in seven years include four properties in Italy and one in China. The Hotel de la Ville in Rome and the Masseria Torre Maizza in Puglia opens in May 2019; the first Rocco Forte House luxury serviced apartment opens in Rome in September; the fabled Grand Hotel Villa Igiea will re-emerge in Palermo, Sicily, in 2020; and in China, the group will open the Westbund Hotel in Shanghai in 2019.

Forte says with his Italian origins and business relationships, he will continue to look very hard for opportunities in Italy. His core partner, Cassa Depositi Prestiti of Italy, which acquired a 23% shareholding for £60 million (US$76.4 million) in 2015, is a strong supporter of Italian development. Lloyds’ Bank of Scotland has solidly supported Rocco Forte Hotels for 21 years and recently agreed to a new 10-year debt facility for £158 million (US$201 million).

The group already operates the Hotel de Russie in Rome, the Verdura Resort in Sicily and Florence’s Savoy Hotel, which underwent a major renovation last year. “I want to complete the network in Italy. I want to be in Milan, Venice and the Amalfi Coast,” Forte said. “I can do probably quite a number of smaller hotels in the cultural cities, as well.”

Forte is especially excited about the revival of the Grand Hotel Villa Igiea, which was built at the beginning of the 20th century and had a history of hosting royalty and Hollywood film stars before falling into disrepair. “It’s a Libertine-style building, and it’s a little jewel,” he said. “It coincides with a renewed interest in Sicily as a tourist destination, and Palermo itself is having a bit of a revival. Many people buying old houses there and palaces and doing them up.”

Forte is also operating his first Rocco Forte House – a five-bedroom apartment in Rome close by the Hotel de la Ville and the Hotel de Russie. The owner of the Hotel de la Ville asked Forte to take on the project and as a result has a potentially new venture. “I don’t think I can do these independently of a nearby hotel base,” he said. “But we’re looking at several things where we have existing hotels. And so you might well see us doing some more.”

“I still have a lot of energy and enthusiasm. So I don't see why I shouldn't keep going for quite a while longer.” -- Sir Rocco Forte
“I still have a lot of energy and enthusiasm. So I don’t see why I shouldn’t keep going for quite a while longer.” — Sir Rocco Forte

Forte is also working more with his children, and he says he does listen when they speak up about plans for the business. His son, who is the youngest, is working on the development side; one daughter has just become food and beverage director and his other daughter looks after all the spas in the system and just developed a line of beauty products.

“They have a much younger perspective and are not afraid to tell me what they think. And I think it adds value to the business in that way,” Forte said. “It also gives a feeling of continuity to the business as there is a greater family presence in the hotels themselves.”

Even with a welcoming ear, Forte says sometimes he is pretty clear on what he wants to do and insists on it. “But I think it’s helpful to discuss things with a broader circle at the top of the company, and that way you’ll arrive at much better decisions.”

His methods and management style must be working right now as sales are up about 6% this year with the American market remaining extremely strong. For the year ended April 30, 2018, revenues exceeded £200 million (US$255 million) and RevPAR was up 10% on a constant currency basis. “The Middle East business hasn’t come back completely, although it’s improved,” he said. “And Russian business has actually grown this year.”

All of this has given Forte, now 73, renewed confidence and ambition, and when asked how much longer he wants to helm the family business started by his father Lord Charles Forte in 1935, he said, “I still have a lot of energy and enthusiasm. So I don’t see why I shouldn’t keep going for quite a while longer.”

The Masseria Torre Maizza in Puglia opens in May 2019
The Masseria Torre Maizza in Puglia opens in May 2019
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