Chairman interview: Sir Rocco Forte
After a number of false starts in the region, Sir Rocco Forte is finally back to introduce his luxury boutique hotels to the market. Chairman of Rocco Forte Hotels, he founded the hotel company in 1996 after his father’s firm was sold in a hostile take-over bid.
During his time at Forte Plc, Forte had responsibility for more than 800 hotels, 1,000 restaurants and almost 100,000 employees in 50 countries around the world, and was knighted in December 1994 for services to the UK tourism industry.
And yet with his new company, he is keen to take it slower than before. He tells Hotelier Middle East over lunch in Dubai: “Everybody’s big, everyone’s looking at pipelines… that’s not my thing. I want to do a real hotel, I want to do something special, something unique.”
While Rocco Forte Hotels launched its first Middle East hotel in Abu Dhabi in November 2011, the group pulled out of the project in early 2013, which was re-flagged by Hilton later that year. Forte honestly says: “The owner and myself didn’t see eye to eye on a number of things, so I pulled out.”
He reiterates: “I don’t want to do just another hotel. The difference between my company and most of the international hotel companies is that they are all busy with pipelines and hotel openings — I don’t have to have a pipeline. I want to increase the size of my business quite significantly but I want to do special hotels, I don’t want to do hotels for the sake of having them.”
The re-entry of Forte in the Middle East will come in Q3 this year, with the Assila Hotel in Jeddah; the deal was signed nearly 10 years ago. The name of the hotel comes from reversing the name of the owners, the Al Issa family.
Forte reveals: “By the end of September, you will be able to see that hotel. This part of the world is very important to us. 12% of our business in our European hotels comes from Gulf states. In the last 12 months, we’ve had a 24% increase in business from this part of the world. It's very significant for us.”
Forte is no stranger to region: he first arrived in Dubai in 1978 for the opening of the Airport Hotel, managed by Trusthouse Forte, the company his father founded. By 1994, the firm had 14 hotels in this region with Gerald Lawless running them as area director of the Middle East.
Rocco Forte Hotels had, prior to the recession in 2008 and the Arab Spring, six hotels on the way in the region across Marrakech, Luxor, Cairo, Beirut, with discussions ongoing for Damascus. Jeddah was the only hotel that survived. The Shepherd Hotel in Cairo and the one in Luxor is still there, but Forte says there currently isn’t the money to develop them. “So I’m hoping that things can settle there and in the future we can get on with those two as well,” he added.
The Saudi Arabian hotel will be the first in a series of new hotels across the world; in addition to focusing on the European market, the group has also signed its first Asia-Pacific property scheduled for 2018.
Irene Forte talks Spa & Wellness
The hotel has one male spa across one floor, with two squash courts, a gym, an outsourced barbers shop, four treatment rooms, and a hammam, reveals Rocco Forte Hotels brand manager and spa manager Irene Forte. The female spa is smaller, with three treatment rooms and a hair salon, along with a provision for a lady’s only hour at the pool.
With regard to products, the company hopes to bring in Forte Organics, which it recently launched, created using organic ingredients grown at Verdura Resort in Sicily.
“We produce organic olive oil there, and the products have all sorts of Sicilian active ingredients such as prickly pear, hibiscus, citrus fruits, and they have been received really well in all of our spas so now we’re looking at all the laws to get them into Jeddah,” she adds.
The hotel also plans to partner with a high-end luxury brand, particularly for the female spa.
The Sicilian resort also has five health-focused programmes under the Rocco Forte health banner (Detox, Slim, Relax, Anti-Age, and Fit), and Forte says she is considering adapting that to the local market. Local touches such as use of regional ingredients will also be included in the spa rituals.
Art attack
Local art is set to play a major role in the design of the Assila Hotel, Jeddah by the Rocco Forte Hotels group, set to open in Q3 2016.
Lydia Forte, bar and restaurant development manager, Rocco Forte Hotels, says: “What makes this hotel really special and part of what gives it its local authentic identity is the amazing collection of more than 2,000 pieces of artwork by local Saudi artists in the hotel.”
She reveals that the owners, the Al Issa family, played a key role in developing the art collection.
“An incredible amount of thought has gone into the selection of each piece. Not only are there extremely talented artists showcased in the hotel but each piece fits the location and has a meaning,” she explains.
One of the pieces that she reveals is titled ‘Journey of a Lifetime’ created by Saudi Arabian artist Maha Malluh. The piece has been created with antique luggage boxes which women used to keep their clothes or personal items in Saudi Arabia.
“It’s an homage to Lady Zainab, also known as Lady Cobbold, who was the first British woman on record to perform the hajj.
“It’s very fitting for us to be a British hotel coming to the Middle East to have this in the lobby,” she adds.
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“With Jeddah, this will be the calling card for our group and it will encourage more hotels in this part of the world.
“Jeddah is not particularly well-served with hotels at the moment. This hotel is quite special, it’s located in the middle of the main shopping street. It’s a sophisticated hotel, it’s got a European feel to it. It’s not going to be the usual style of hotel you can see in this part of the world — outside of Dubai.” The property will offer 210 keys, with 146 rooms and 62 suites, the latter of which start from 80m2 up to 568m2. The property also has 94 residence units, primarily focused on long-stay guests.
Forte’s sister and the group’s deputy chairman Olga Polizzi worked with Martin Brudniski Design to create the interiors, which is highly art-driven.
From a meetings perspective, the property offers a whole floor with 11 meeting rooms, with one ballroom able to fit up to 500 people. The individual meeting rooms are named after all of the group’s hotels across the world.
Now that the hotel is getting closer to opening, I ask whether Forte is casting an eye across other areas of the region. Oman has been considered, as has Dubai, but he isn’t certain whether it’s the right time for the group.
“Oman was of interest; that’s the only place I’ve really looked at. I have looked at a number of projects in Dubai but none of them have been really exciting, they can’t differentiate themselves in any way. There are so many different hotels opening all the time, you’ve got to do something which is distinctive. And I’m not sure what it is and I’m not sure exactly where I’d put them.”
He continues: “This is an exciting phase for the company. The next year is generally good, with sales pattern growth in forward bookings for the year ahead. Last year was a great year and we’re seeing the continuation of that trend.”
Currently, 30% of Rocco Forte Hotels’ business comes from the United States, with that prompting Forte to consider having hotels in gateway cities like New York and Los Angeles. And while the events in Brussels have set the company back in that country, he is keen to target opening more hotels in Europe, with a focus on Italy in particular.
Going from a company overseeing hundreds of hotels to a boutique portfolio of 10, I ask what he thinks about the recent mergers and acquisitions in the hospitality industry. He is positive about the effect it will have — on his company.
“It’s quite frightening now when you think about the Marriott Starwood deal — 37 different brands. It must be a nightmare for everyone. Accor’s bought Fairmont, that’s a huge conglomeration of brands,” he explains.
He concludes: “Niche players like me are in a very good position to move forward and offer owners something different and something special.”
Lydia Forte talks Food and Beverage
Lydia Forte, bar and restaurant development manager at Rocco Forte Hotels, says the ground floor houses Italian coffee lounge, Il Caffé, which will be open 24 hours. It has an outdoor terrace which overlooks Tahlia Street and serves Arabic mezze and shisha. Forte says: "It’s got very colourful interiors, lots of cushions. It's a place to relax, drink speciality coffees, play board games, which we will have in abundance."
On the first floor is the hotel's all-day dining restaurant, Twenty Four, which will have a range of cuisines on offer, along with freshly baked breads on-site. Forte says the venue will also host special themed evenings.
"Pampas is the Argentinian steak restaurant. It is one of the most exciting in terms of interior design. It’s a great place for large groups of friends and family to enjoy meats and fish from an open grill. It will be one of the only places to serve Arabic non-alcoholic beer on draft, and a range of fresh fruit juices."
On the top floor by the pool, with a view of Jeddah, will be Aubergine, serving Arab, Mediterranean, Lebanese and Armenian dishes. "It [has] colourful tiled tabletops, comfortable lounge sofas, white awnings... it’s a cool breezy place to enjoy food late into the night. It will be open for private events as well," says Forte.
Finally, Coco’Ba is the brand's chocolatier bakery, which is located just under the apartments.
A brief history
Established by Sir Rocco Forte and his sister, Olga Polizzi in 1996, Rocco Forte Hotels is a family of 10 operating hotels and resorts:
• Hotel de Russie, Rome
• Hotel Savoy, Florence
• Verdura Resort, Sicily
• The Balmoral, Edinburgh
• Brown’s Hotel, London
• The Charles Hotel, Munich
• Villa Kennedy, Frankfurt
• Hotel de Rome, Berlin
• Hotel Amigo, Brussels
• Hotel Astoria, St Petersburg