Sir Rocco Forte enjoys record pay day after hotels empire deal
The hotels group founded by Sir Rocco Forte has issued a record dividend for the first full year after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) became a major shareholder.
Rocco Forte Hotels has paid out dividends totalling £8.9m for the year to 30 April, 2025, to its shareholders.
The international hotels group, which is headquartered in London, is owned by Sir Rocco Forte and 49 per cent by PIF following a deal which valued it at £1.4bn which was announced in December 2023.
Last year’s accounts revealed the group incurred costs of £16.7m associated with the deal which impacted its pre-tax profits.
However, new results filed with Companies House have revealed the group’s pre-tax profits bounced back from £15.8m to £25.4m during its latest financial year.
Its revenue also increased over the same period from £311.9m to £318.3m.
UK revenue increased from £67.6m to £70.3m and from £223.4m to £224.3m in Europe.
Its revenue in Russia also grew from £20.8m to £23.5m. The group runs Hotel Astoria and The Angleterre Hotel in St Petersburg.
The new accounts also show the number of people employed by the group in the year increased from 2,470 to 2,692.
Revenue continues to rise around Sir Rocco Forte’s hotels empire
Rocco Forte Hotels was established in 1996 by hotelier Sir Rocco and his sister, Olga Polizzi.
The group operates 16 hotels across UK, Italy, Germany, Belgium and Russia while a further four are currently under development.
In the UK, the group runs The Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh and Brown’s Hotel in London.
In separately filed accounts, The Balmoral Hotel posted a turnover of £41.2m for the same financial year, up from £38m, while its pre-tax profit increased from £8.8m to £9.8m.
A statement signed off by the board said: “The group undertook a strategic refurbishment programme during the year that temporarily reduced available room inventory and full-service capacity at selected properties.
“This impacted the group’s financial performance, however the investment is aimed at enhancing asset quality and guest experience in order to support performance in future periods.”
In the year the group set aside £64.6m for capital investment projects, up from £27.7m in the prior 12 months.
The group added: “In the new financial year ending 30 April, 2026, the group has continued to trade well despite the impact of increased competition in key markets, notably Rome and London.
“Revenue in the first two months of the year increased by 2.7 per cent compared to the same period in the prior year.
“The outlook for the new financial year remains positive.”
In October 2024, Sir Rocco Forte was one of more than 300 business leaders who signed a letter to Chancellor Rachel Reeves to reinstate tax-free shopping in the UK, calling the so-called tourist tax a “spectacular own goal” for retail.
Other signatories included designer Paul Smith, Heathrow Airport, John Lewis and Shakespeare’s Globe.
At the time, the policy was blamed for a slump in luxury selling in London, with visitors reportedly travelling to the capital for a cultural visit and then heading to Paris or Milan to shop.
VAT-free shopping, which allowed visitors to claim 20 per cent of their purchase back, was scrapped in 2021 for visitors outside the EU by then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak as part of a post-Brexit consultation.