Photo by Nick Mele
If you see a Dapper Dan in a bow tie, Panama hat and colorful jacket strutting down Palm Beach’s Worth Avenue surrounded by a posse of tourists, it’s likely Heinrich “Rick” Rose. The 60-year-old West Palm Beach native recalls being unsure of what he’d major in at Florida State University until his mother sent him a Palm Beach Post article about the general manager of The Breakers.
“The article went into detail about his life history,” Rose remembers. “I thought to myself, ‘What an exciting job!’ He was opening hotels all over the world, reaching the pinnacle of his career as the general manager of The Breakers. [To] anyone who grows up in the Palm Beaches, [it] is like our castle.”
Inspired, Rose majored in hospitality management and minored in German. He began working at hotels while in college and joined the Hyatt corporate leadership training program upon graduation. From there, he landed a job as a reservationist in Frankfurt, Germany. What was supposed to be a three-month European adventure turned into 16 years, during which Rose climbed the ranks in sales and marketing at major hotel brands.
Rose returned to West Palm Beach in 2004, running a bed and breakfast for 16 years on a historic property he purchased in Grandview Heights. He reached out to local historian Jim Ponce, who gave Worth Avenue tours, to help him curate a tour for hotel guests. Rose became Ponce’s understudy and took over in 2011.
Currently the official historian for the Worth Avenue Association, Rose discusses architecture, fashion and social anecdotes of the movers and shakers past and present.
The co-founder/co-proprietor of Palm Beach Vacation Rentals® and author of “Palm Beach: The Essential Guide to America’s Legendary Resort Town,” Rose is known as a local expert. Last year, he received the Judge James R. Knott Historical Contribution Award from the Historical Society of Palm Beach County for enriching the area’s history. This year, he won the Discover the Palm Beach’s 32nd annual Providencia Award for promoting the tourist destination.
“It’s the highest possible recognition for my life’s work,” he says. “It’s literally my Oscar.”