Tanned and wearing a gray shirt with his company’s logo, Rocco Forte looks relaxed and remarkably energetic for his 78 years. He’s staying at his Verdura Resort on Sicily’s south coast, a “golfer’s paradise” with two 18-hole courses and another 9-hole course.
“That’s why I like being here,” he tells Robb Report. “I’m a fanatical golfer, not that I’m that good.”
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The owner of a covetable collection of prestigious five-star hotels, resorts, residences, and villas—Brown’s in London, the Balmoral in Edinburgh, nine properties in Italy, and others in Germany, Belgium, and Russia—Forte has made a name as one of the brashest figures in the often opinion-shy world of luxury hospitality.
A vocal Brexiteer, Forte donated £100,000 to the Conservative Party before the 2019 election in support of Boris Johnson, who he saw as the man to “get Brexit done.” He says he doesn’t care what anyone thinks about that—in politics, as in business, he’s used to fighting his corner. He was tested early in a scenario ripped from Succession, when he briefly took over the family business—then the largest hospitality conglomerate in the world—from his father in 1993, only to lose it in a hostile takeover. There was little doubt, at least in his own mind, that he would rebuild his father’s empire. The proof came last December, when Rocco Forte Hotels agreed to sell a 49 percent stake to the Saudi sovereign wealth fund (PIF) for a reported $741 million, which values the company at $1.5 billion.
“Going forward, it’s important for us to have a strong partner, and PIF is financially a very strong partner,” Forte says. “They have a long-term vision, not like a hedge fund that wants to come in and out—they’re prepared to stay for the long haul.”
And he means “going forward.” The sale wasn’t a move toward retirement but rather the beginning of what he sees as a legacy-defining expansion. Just last month he opened Rocco Forte House with 11 city-center apartments in a 19th-century palazzo in Milan, “something relatively new” for the company. “It’s very beautiful and well-located. It should go well,” he says.
There are five other new hotels in the works, including the Carlton (set to open in Milan in June 2025), Costa Esmeralda in Sardinia (2026), and Palazzo Sirignano in Naples (2027). A propety Puglia hotel is also underway.
The company is still a family affair. Rocco’s sister Olga Polizzi, who cofounded the company, works as director of design. His daughter Lydia is group director of food and beverage, while his other daughter Irene, who runs her own skin care line, consults on the spas. But it appears to be Rocco’s son, Charles, the company’s director of development, who’s being lined up to eventually take on the top job.
“He could be—we’ll have to see,” Forte says. “There will probably be an interim stage. I’m developing a lot of executives who could take on a more senior role in conjunction with my children.”
For whomever is left holding the reins, Forte is planning to leave a global hospitality empire. With PFI’s backing, he hopes to double the brand’s hotels in the next five years. He’s targeting new markets like Spain, Greece, Paris, Dubai, and, of course, Saudi Arabia. The U.S. is also of particular interest.
“Forty-five percent of our business comes out of the United States, so we have a very strong customer base there,” he says.
Where you aren’t likely to see a new suite from Forte is in his home country. Since launching his company with the purchase of the Balmoral in Edinburgh for $46 million in 1991, and later Brown’s, which was reopened in 2005 by none other than Margaret Thatcher, Forte has favored the profitability of Italy to England.
But last year, Rocco threatened that if the Labour Party won the next election, he might leave the U.K. and move to Italy for good.
“I’m spending a lot more time in Italy now, largely because 70 percent of the business is here,” he says, skirting the question of whether that was an empty threat. “I spent most of my life in the U.K., but I don’t like the way things have been going for the last 14 or 15 years, and I think things are going to get much worse. I think a lot of nasties are going to be released on businesses by the current government.”
He’s equally disillusioned with the Conservative Party for its record on the economy, tax, and immigration, and he might, he says, support Nigel Farage’s anti-immigration Reform party going forward. “If the Conservative leader is another ‘wishy-washy,’ it’s a party that’s finished,” he says.
One particular thorn in his side has been the discontinuation of tax-free shopping, which had previously allowed visitors to reclaim VAT on purchases made in the U.K.
“It’s put people off visiting. A lot of people now go and shop in Paris instead of London,” says Forte.
He’s also concerned about the Scottish National Party’s recent legislation allowing local authorities to impose a tourist tax on hotel stays. “They’re talking about 5 or 10 percent. That’s disastrous. That raises prices,” he says.
Still, Forte believes in Britain’s luxury sector. His outlook is even rosy. Making his voice heard on major issues, especially those that affect his bottom line, is simply a part of the job as he sees it. “My wife [Aliai Forte] is very keen to take trips and holidays, but I keep pointing out that I have to spend a lot of time working in the business still,” he says. “When you have a business, you have a certain amount of power and ability to do things. It’s very satisfying. If I didn’t have my work, I don’t know what I’d do. I’d get bored very, very quickly.”
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