Socio-economic effects of trade fairs on host cities from a citizens' perspective: The case of Thessaloniki, Greece

Abstract

Purpose

Trade fairs have crucial socio-economic, cultural and political impacts. This paper aims to explore these multi-faceted effects at the local level from a citizens' perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

The economic, social, environmental and socio-cultural effects of trade fair activity are studied by employing the case study of Thessaloniki International Fair. These impacts are examined based on the views of people in the local community of the host area, conducting a fieldwork survey with questionnaires.

Findings

The analysis, based on descriptive statistics, factor analysis and induction statistics, indicates that the economic, environmental and socio-cultural effects of trade fair activity on the city are largely viewed positively by residents of Thessaloniki. Differences in representations of fair's impacts are evident in what specific groups, according to age, educational level and occupation, expect from trade fair activity.

Originality/value

While fairs' effects have been examined by studies in economics, sociology and politics, providing useful insights about the inter-linkages between trade fairs and host cities, they tend to pay little attention to citizens' perceptions on fairs' socio-economic implications. This paper enriches the literature on trade fairs' effects by adopting a citizens' perspective, being among the first studies to focus on representations, perceptions and views of residents of the host city to examine fairs' socio-economic implications.

Citation

Kourkouridis, D., Frangopoulos, Y. and Kapitsinis, N. (2023), "Socio-economic effects of trade fairs on host cities from a citizens' perspective: The case of Thessaloniki, Greece", International Journal of Event and Festival Management, Vol. 14 No. 1, pp. 113-133. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEFM-10-2022-0078