An importance-performance analysis of young people’s response to a wine tourism situation in Greece

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe objective of this paper is to explore the desired wine tourism experience of young adults in Greece. While increased attention has been paid by researchers to age-related differences regarding wine tourism, young wine tourists in Greece have not received academic attention to date. This study addresses this gap in the literature, focusing particularly on the context of the winery visitation experience. More specifically, a list of attributes of the winery visit was adopted for testing and a sample of 156 higher education students participating in a field trip to a winery were asked to rate the importance and performance of each attribute. The study was undertaken within an Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) framework. As indicated from the empirical findings, the core product of the winery experience appears to have limited appeal to young consumers, who have other priorities when visiting a winery. These include enjoying the scenery and food, socialising, and undertaking non-wine related activities. They are also particularly price sensitive. The final section considers the implications of these findings for winery managers and future research into the wine-related experiences of young markets.