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1 – 10 of 54Souvenirs have been repeatedly studied as both a subject and as a variable for other tourism-related phenomena, but research into this issue is fragmented. The purpose of this…
Abstract
Purpose
Souvenirs have been repeatedly studied as both a subject and as a variable for other tourism-related phenomena, but research into this issue is fragmented. The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to analyze souvenir in tourism to provide a comprehensive state-of-the-art review. Second, this paper contributes to identifying the directions for future search through reviewing existing literature. This study is one of the first papers to offer a systematic overview of the key themes in tourism souvenir research. In addition to the key themes, this paper also offers insights into future souvenir research.
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The purpose of this study is to propose that in-factory experiences transfer into souvenir evaluation, and the process is moderated by customers’ commitment and readiness…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to propose that in-factory experiences transfer into souvenir evaluation, and the process is moderated by customers’ commitment and readiness cumulated in daily life.
Design/methodology/approach
The study collected data from 398 tourists of tea leaves tourism factories.
Findings
The results reveal that interactive experience is a dominant determinant of perceived souvenir value. Interactive and hedonic experiences reinforce each other to create perceived souvenir value. Low commitment diverts customers to emphasize hedonic experience, whereas low readiness constraints customers’ resources, and hence, depreciates value delivered from interactive experience.
Research limitations/implications
Intrinsic hedonic values are weaker predictors than extrinsic ones for perceived value in a leisure tourism setting. Merchandize quality is perceived and judged together with interpersonal interactions in the industrial tourism contexts, instead of objectively evaluating by customers themselves.
Practical implications
The experience or credence attribute of tea leaves is difficult for ordinary customers to evaluate, leaving most of the consumption value to be fostered by the firm. Perceived souvenir value could transfer to routinized purchase behavior, it is more imperative turning initial tourists into committed loyal customers by relationship management strategies than merely creating hedonic surroundings.
Originality/value
The study contributions are twofold: first, the study extends the influence of tourist experience to the perceived souvenir value; second, the study verifies the interaction effects of in-factory experiences and customer roles on perceived souvenir value.
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This paper discusses how vinyl records become souvenirs of musical tourism. The record-as-souvenir dynamic is particularly relevant in the discussion about punk culture in cities…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper discusses how vinyl records become souvenirs of musical tourism. The record-as-souvenir dynamic is particularly relevant in the discussion about punk culture in cities like Washington, DC, and other scenes which defy encapsulation as touristic landscapes. Arguing a fluid perspective on musical tourism, the purpose of this paper is to present the argument that vinyl functions as de facto souvenirs of underground musical landscapes.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper incorporates literature on souvenirs within tourism studies, market research, and empirical data. It also builds upon research on emotional geographies and the resurgence of the vinyl record industry.
Findings
In many cases, musical recordings (particularly those on vinyl, for tactile and fetishist reasons), while not designed for the function of being souvenirs, come to signify counter-narrative definitions of place.
Research limitations/implications
This work focuses on the context of vinyl as souvenirs with findings derived from the intersection of tourism, critical geography, and music marketing. In offering this contextual account, there is no claim toward generalization but rather the work is put forward as a depth of insight on a phenomenon long in the making yet neglected by researchers. However, a more comprehensive approach to provide further insight on vinyl as souvenirs might include consumer interviews.
Practical implications
This paper expands the conversation about souvenirs further into the era of modern, underground tourism. It argues for the inclusion of music consumption, especially vinyl, as prototypical and unintentional souvenirs as decided by the consumer rather than the producer. It also expands the discourse on counter-narratives of places like Washington, DC, in conversations about place-based music marketing and tourism.
Social implications
This paper frames musical souvenirs in terms of the consumer deciding their value and role in the cultivation of sense of place, rather than the producer. Additionally, music retailers provide a valuable role in their city’s cultivated image, but even this is a collaboration between the retailers and consumers.
Originality/value
This paper addresses the function of vinyl records within the purview of tourism studies and positions as an original contribution connecting music consumption and tourism practices.
Iuliia Trabskaia, Iuliia Shuliateva, Rebecca Abushena, Valery Gordin and Mariya Dedova
The purpose of this paper is to identify ways to develop museum shop product, which will possess competitive advantage, and to recommend what should be done to develop such…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify ways to develop museum shop product, which will possess competitive advantage, and to recommend what should be done to develop such product so that it has a positive impact on the city brand of St. Petersburg.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 76 museums have been studied through the observation method to describe their shops’ inventory in terms of percentages of each product. Mostly St. Petersburg museums were included in the analysis. The observation method enabled the researchers to analyse the inventory of the museum souvenir shops. The findings of the analysis enabled the researchers to reach conclusions about museums’ strategies of product development.
Findings
The research allowed to make the conclusion that although the museum shops in St.Petersburg demonstrate positive tendencies in the development of competitive stores’ products a lot of work is still to be done. Not all museums are characterised by availability of clear strategy for product development. They offer souvenirs (if any) which do not differ from those existing on the market according to topics and functions which are characteristic for them. Recommendations on how to make the product of museum shops more competitive were proposed.
Practical implications
Cities need new and fresh ways to create and promote their brands. Museums can contribute to this significantly with the help of souvenirs production. This research will provide insight into the process of how museums can do this by developing their shops’ inventory strategies. Recommendations to improve strategies for creation of competitive product were offered in the paper.
Originality/value
In today’s competitive conditions, museums are creating augmented products and create museum shops. Nevertheless, the role of museum shops in brand creation is underexplored. Museum shops have a high potential for creating high-quality products that may influence the museum and city brand in a positive way, as souvenirs and visual images of museum artifacts play an essential role in making an impression on tourists.
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Tourists' special possessions are under-studied in consumer research despite their importance in self-identity development. Furthermore, extant studies about tourist souvenirs…
Abstract
Purpose
Tourists' special possessions are under-studied in consumer research despite their importance in self-identity development. Furthermore, extant studies about tourist souvenirs fail in providing an extensive and in-depth view of souvenirs, and in exploring both their functional and symbolic dimensions. This paper aims to better and deeply understand the symbols and meanings attached to tourist souvenirs as well as the functions they fulfil in contemporary consumption.
Design/methodology/approach
A naturalistic interpretive approach has been privileged. A total of 19 informants have been interviewed and observed at home in a triangulation perspective. Interview transcripts, field notes, and pictorial material were analyzed and interpreted through the grounded theory approach.
Findings
A new typology of four types of symbolic souvenirs including touristic trinkets, destination stereotypes, paper mementoes, and picked-up objects is developed. The typology is grounded on four major functions souvenirs may fulfil in terms of meanings and identity construction, that is: categorization, self-expression, connectedness, and self-creation.
Originality/value
This study contributes to a better knowledge of tourist souvenirs, which is a typical case of consumers' special possessions that may be central in self-identity processes. Considered as powerful “messengers of meaning”, tourist souvenirs help consumers to maintain material links with cherished past experiences and to convey individual and cultural meanings to their broader existence. Typologies such as the one developed in this paper are crucial not only for researchers but also for marketers and retailers.
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Lucia Pizzichini, Valerio Temperini and Gian Luca Gregori
This paper aims to identify what ethical attributes tourists associate with national parks’ brands shown on food souvenir labels and the influence of such attributes on purchase…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify what ethical attributes tourists associate with national parks’ brands shown on food souvenir labels and the influence of such attributes on purchase motivations.
Design/methodology/approach
An exploratory study was carried out involving a total of 102 Italian tourists, who were interviewed at two different souvenir shops in Italy. Respondents were first asked to describe what images and values they were associating with the visited Italian National Park. The second level of questions related to the association of food products with national parks and the purchase motivations of food products branded with the national park’s label. The ethical attributes associated with the national parks’ brands and their relevance in purchase motivations were detected and analyzed through content analysis.
Findings
The analysis of the national park brand allows highlighting the food souvenir role in communicating ethical values that influence the perceived quality of food as well as tourists’ purchase motivations. The analysis reveals interesting implications for the enhancement of local productions in tourist destinations, more specifically, how the place brand can act as a valuable communication tool. Particular attention is given to the crucial role that national parks’ brands play in strengthening the value proposition of small businesses located within parks. This vision must be implemented from the perspective of mutual promotion of local food and tourism in these parks.
Originality/value
The results of this paper contributed to the literature by filling the gap regarding the role of place brands in promoting food souvenirs.
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Konstantinos Andriotis, Pantea Foroudi and Reza Marvi
Although love has received considerable attention in the marketing literature, there is limited past research on love in a tourism context. This study aims to overcome past…
Abstract
Purpose
Although love has received considerable attention in the marketing literature, there is limited past research on love in a tourism context. This study aims to overcome past research negligence by proposing the concept of heritage destination love.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative approach was undertaken, face-to-face in-depth interviews with 35 respondents in London to discuss about the concept of heritage destination love antecedents and its consequences, tourists’ behavior and tourists’ feeling, passion and love about the destinations as playing a magnificent role in tourism development.
Findings
The outcome reveals that heritage destination love has three elements – passion, emotional attachment and identification.
Originality/value
Despite its limitations, the current study offers theoretical insights of the psychological theory of the love triangle in relation to heritage destination love.
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Themistoklis Altintzoglou, Morten Heide and Trude Borch
Food is an important element of a holiday. An in depth understanding of factors that influence tourists’ perception of food is central in increased tourist satisfaction and…
Abstract
Purpose
Food is an important element of a holiday. An in depth understanding of factors that influence tourists’ perception of food is central in increased tourist satisfaction and repurchase intentions. However, tourists may differ in innovativeness and thus in their willingness to buy unfamiliar food and food souvenirs. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the special context in which tourists choose food during holidays and the associated food-cultural distance involved in this context.
Design/methodology/approach
This study was based on data collected by using a questionnaire completed by 277 tourists on board a small Norwegian cruise ship sailing along the coast of Norway. The main focus in the questionnaire was on factors that influence tourists when considering buying food in general and food souvenirs in particular.
Findings
The main finding was that food souvenirs should be adapted to the needs of tourists with high and low innovativeness to fulfil the needs of the whole target tourist population. Even though highly innovative tourists were more willing to buy food souvenirs that are characteristic of the country visited, tourists with low innovativeness may have been more comfortable with the purchase of food that is less innovative, within a different food-culture. The main factors influencing tourists in choosing and buying food and food souvenirs on holiday are quality, taste, local origin and the perceived authenticity of the food.
Originality/value
This paper provides data that reveal similarities and most interestingly differences in food choice behaviour of consumers in the context of being tourists. It describes the relationship of choice with innovativeness, which may vary while being at home vs being a tourist and exposed to a distant food culture. It brings together perspectives on local food, authenticity, familiarity, innovativeness, budget management/price and their interaction during a real life situation that is rarely studied in the consumer research literature. This study adds a refreshing sample to the existing literature about food choice; tourists.
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Peter Björk and Hannele Kauppinen-Räisänen
This study aims to explore factors affecting travellers’ food-related behaviour by focusing on the local food market. By doing so, the study contributes to the research on food…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore factors affecting travellers’ food-related behaviour by focusing on the local food market. By doing so, the study contributes to the research on food experience in tourism and food-based regional development. The local food phenomenon presents essential research issues from various perspectives.
Design/methodology/approach
A self-administered questionnaire provided to attendees of a travel fair gauges respondents’ food attitudes and food-related behaviour related to information sourcing and perceptions of food experiences.
Findings
The study reveals three types of food-related behaviour. Experiencers are committed; they perceive food as essential to destination choices. They search for food-related information before their trips and value originality, newness and locality, as well as authenticity and uniqueness in local food, which eventually have an impact on travel satisfaction. Enjoyers have more casual attitudes towards food, though they view it as an important aspect of their holiday. For survivors, the local food of their destination serves mainly physiological needs.
Practical implications
Travellers’ food-related attitudes vary, and they behave according to these variations. This information serves as a means to brand hospitality and tourism businesses. Local food attracts travellers and it contributes to the tourist experience, indicating marketing potential for hospitality industries, tourism business and regional development.
Originality/value
This study adds to tourism research by exploring the effect of food attitudes on behaviours related to local food and local food markets. In particular, it highlights information sourcing, including local food and restaurants, and reveals food and eating characteristics that contribute to various types of travellers’ local food experiences, which have received little prior research attention.
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Linda Brennan and Theresa Savage
The purpose of this paper is to propose guidelines for business enterprises engaging with indigenous communities to protect their intellectual property rights, particularly…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose guidelines for business enterprises engaging with indigenous communities to protect their intellectual property rights, particularly indigenous art works produced for the souvenir industry.
Design/methodology/approach
Literature on indigenous art and souvenirs demonstrating exploitation of indigenous communities’ intellectual property was facilitated by a lack of knowledge of how to otherwise behave. The proposed guidelines for commercial entities wishing to engage ethically with indigenous communities draws on international exemplars.
Findings
A twelve‐point framework for ethical commerce in indigenous souvenirs between indigenous communities and businesses is proposed to ensure populations lacking economic and social power are not disenfranchised by limited experience in a market society.
Social implications
The proposed guidelines contribute to achieving reconciliation between mainstream and indigenous people in various countries throughout the world.
Originality/value
This paper assists development of guidelines enabling ethical decision‐making in the souvenir industry applying a critical approach to the principles of corporate responsibility.
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