The story of the rise of the Forte family to being leading hoteliers throughout Europe is chronicled in the autobiography of Charles (Lord) Forte. From a milk bar in Torquay, through the purchase in the pre-war years of the Café Royal in London, to the development of Europe’s largest hotel group, the story is one of family endeavour. At its peak, the Forte Group employed 100,000 people in 800 hotels in over 50 countries, including Plaza Athénée in New York, Sandy lane in Barbados and the George Cinq in Paris

Family endeavour is now creating a leading luxury hotel group in form of the Rocco Forte Collection. With his sister Olga Polizzi as Design Director, Sir Rocco Forte is developing a chain of luxury hotels that his father would have been proud to be associated with.

With new hotels underway in Prague, Sicily, Jeddah, Marrakech and Abu Dhabi, recent openings in Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich and the re-opening of the refurbished Geneva property, the group is currently undertaking a major expansion. Munich opened in October 2007 and is named Charles in honour of Lord Forte, a tribute from the son to the father.

I have followed the development of Olga Polizzi’s sense of style, colour and texture for many years. This has been both as a designer working for her with the original Forte Group and through writing Reviews of the company’s Amigo in Brussels and the Savoy in beautiful Florence, as well as having checked out the redevelopment of the iconic Brown’s Hotel in London.

It was with considerable excitement then that I drove to Munich to see how this sense of style had developed, and my expectations were high as we struggled to find the hotel; struggled because our satnav seemed able to find the road but not the hotel. “Ah Yes” said the welcoming smiling Sinhalese doorman at the Charles, “as a new building its number is not in satnav systems, you see. It is valet parking,” (then seeing the number plate), “you have come by car all the way from England! Don’t worry, we drive on your side of the road in Sri Lanka,” as he went to the non-drivers side.