False start for Rocco Forte chain in Abu Dhabi

Rocco Forte, the luxury European hotel chain, exited its Abu Dhabi property because the location was not right for the brand, according to a senior executive with the company.

Richard Power of Rocco Forte Hotels at their stand at the Arabian Travel Market 2013 on May 6 in Dubai. Charles Crowell for The National
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Rocco Forte, the luxury European hotel chain, exited its Abu Dhabi property because the location within the city was ultimately not right for the brand, according to a senior executive with the company.

The distinctive wavy, green glass building on Airport Road was supposed to be in an area zoned for banks and embassies, said the brand managing director, Richard Power, but the developments have not materialised.

The project was also originally due to include a large apartment building and a luxury mall, but neither came to pass by the time the group left the property.

"It looked, from all we were seeing at the time, and to others too, that it was a good location," said Mr Power. "The reality was that none of those developments have materialised and none of them can be seen on the horizon.

"So those areas which are very much seen as our core markets for our high-end luxury travellers just didn't exist in enough volume."

Rocco Forte came to an agreement with the owner to exit the venture and received a "fair settlement" for ending the agreement, said Mr Power.

Rocco Forte entered into a management contract in 2008 with Al Farida Investments to operate the Dh600 million facility, which was a joint venture between Tourism Development and Investment Company and Al Farida.

Al Farida could not be reached for a comment.

Mr Power said the experience was a "false start" but the brand has not ruled out a return to Abu Dhabi.

"If we could find the right property in the right place as the market stabilised that is something we would very much like to manage," said Mr Power.

"We still hold a little place in our hearts for Abu Dhabi as a destination. We spent enough time selling it to know it's an appealing destination for inbound tourists but it is just not the right location for the hotel."

The hotel was the chain's first foray into the Middle East market, but it currently has another project under construction in Jeddah.

Building work is complete and it is moving into the fit-out stage with a view to holding a soft opening in a year's time.

"Saudi Arabia is the biggest of the countries in the Middle East for us as a source market. We already have a lot of customers in Saudi Arabia who know the Rocco Forte brand and have experienced it," added Mr Power.

More than US$13 million of the chain's revenue was from the Middle East last year, making the region one of Rocco Forte's top five source markets.

"Generally speaking they use suites a lot and they tend to have long stays and that boosts the revenue," said Mr Power.

Popular hotels include The Charles Hotel in Munich, Brown's Hotel in London and Hotel de Russie in Rome, where guests from the Middle East are among the top three groups of guests.

"What we're seeing the growth coming from now is travellers [are] starting to explore rather more locations. So helped by our marketing experts and their experience in other Rocco hotels, we are now seeing them start to show up in Florence and in Brussels," said Mr Power.