It was always intended that Charlie Forte’s son, Sir Rocco, would take over the family business.
During every vacation from Oxford University, where he was studying for a degree in modern languages, Sir Rocco would try his hand in a different department of a Forte hotel. Waiter, receptionist, cellar boy and even kitchen help are all titles that he can add to his CV.
After qualifying as a chartered accountant, he joined the Forte empire on a full-time basis in 1969 and moved on to become the general manager of several hotels, group development manager, personnel manager and even PA to the chief executive. All this experience was grooming him for the day in 1993 when he would step into his father’s shoes and take over what was then one of the biggest hotel groups in the world comprising over 800 properties and a chain of 1,000 restaurants in 50 countries.
In the two years that followed, Sir Rocco increased profits fivefold as he focused on the company’s core hotel business. However, all that came to an abrupt end when, in 1996, Granada won its hostile bid to take control of the group.
Sir Rocco was left with nothing. It was a crucial blow. However, the next day he got busy raising money for his next project.
“I’m an ambitious man,” he said. “I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.”
In four months, he had raised £1bn which led to the birth of RF Hotels with the first hotel in the portfolio being the lavish Balmoral Hotel.
Since 1996 he has never worked harder in his life leaving him less time for relaxing. But at weekends, he makes time to escape his Chelsea home to go to his farmhouse in Guildford. Yet, Sir Rocco is a man who finds it hard to relax. Even his favourite pursuit of shooting is run like a business. “There’s a lot of organising in running a first-class shoot. I’m more busy during the shooting season than I am any other time of the year,” he jokes.