Sir Rocco Forte Sir Rocco Forte


Sir Rocco Forte was born in Bournemouth on 18 January 1945, educated at Downside School in England and read modern languages at Pembroke College, Oxford. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1969, and became a Fellow in 1979. Sir Rocco chaired and led Forte Plc, a company founded by his father, Lord (Charles) Forte, in 1934.

During his time at Forte, Sir Rocco had responsibility for more than 800 hotels, 1,000 restaurants and almost 100,000 employees in 50 countries around the world. As Chairman, Sir Rocco transformed Forte from a UK operation to an international hotel player based on the Meridien chain and a collection of luxury hotels including the George V in Paris, the Sandy Lane in Barbados, the Ritz in Madrid and the Plaza Athénée in New York. Forte Plc was sold in 1996 following a hostile take-over bid and has since been broken up.

His latest venue is creating a collection of hotels; each with its own personality, reflecting location and nationality and as members of the The Rocco Forte Collection brand, they share a high priority for stylish design and attention to detail, exemplary levels of service delivery as well as the latest technology. All have exercise facilities and several of them have sizeable spas and health clubs. The restaurants within the hotels have their own identity and serve food of the highest standards to both guests and local residents.

The Rocco Forte Collection includes the Hotel de Russie in Rome, The Balmoral in Edinburgh, Hotel Astoria in St Petersburg, Hotel Amigo in Brussels, Hotel Savoy in Florence, The Lowry Hotel in Manchester, Le Richemond in Geneva, Brown's Hotel in London, Villa Kennedy in Frankfurt, Hotel De Rome in Berlin, The Charles Hotel in Munich, The Augustine in Prague and Verdura Golf & Spa Resort in Sicily.

Another golf resort is opening in Marrakech in 2011. The Rocco Forte Collection expands into the Middle East with two new hotels in Abu Dhabi opening 2010 and Jeddah which is planned to open in 2011.

The Angleterre Hotel in St Petersburg, four-star sister to the Astoria, has recently been refurbished and is managed by the company but branded separately.