Global Product Development Niche Tourism

Question: Discuss about theGlobal Product Developmentfor Niche Tourism. Answer: Introduction Niche tourism is such a tourism market, which is made for a specific segment of the market, and usually has well defined products which can be customized as per the needs of the customers (Acorn Consulting Partnership Ltd, 2008). Culinary tourism is one of the forms of niche tourism products and is a key product for the niche tourism in Canada, specially the wine segment under it (Canadian Tourism Commission, 2011). In the following parts, the difference aspects related to niche tourism have been highlighted. Different Stakeholders The culinary tourism involves a number of stakeholders includes the public and government institutions, the local food producers, and the event hosting companies. So, not only the standard stakeholders like the consumers and industry, but stakeholders in the form of food producers, farmers, restaurants, the local community and the like are influenced under this (Biazen, 2012). Consumers Participating in Culinary Tourism The people who indulge and have a deep interest in all things food and wine, and at the same time, are fond of travelling to new destinations and exploring new things in culinary segment are the ones who participate in culinary tourism as its consumers (Redl, 2013). The key motivation for such consumers is to travel places where the locally grown food is available. This can be established from the growth in the popularity of the ethnic cuisines like Chinese, Mexican and Indian. In addition to this, the physical and psychological needs, the security, cultural and social needs, the need for prestige, status or self-realization, and the need to belong or the interpersonal needs acts as the motivator for the culinary tourism (UNTWO, 2012). Types of Products Available For Consumers Under the culinary tourism, the consumers have the availability of a variety of products, for instance the local products, the local culture, the landscape, the territory and the sea. The consumers are able to enjoy a range of food and wine products (UNTWO, 2012). However, it is often noticed that the consumers use the products under the culinary tourism as a status symbol. To eat out has become a great trend and is also associated with positive, as well as, emotional memories. As culinary tourism revolves around food, it has become a symbol, a class maker, an emblem and a sign of communion. However, at times, culinary tourism becomes difficult for the locals as they are faced with constant pressure of delivering local produce, even though it may not be the season for the particular product (Redl, 2013). Potential Impacts The International Culinary Tourism Association acknowledges that the culinary tourism is growing leaps and bound each year. Due to the increased interests in travel shows on food channels showing the regional and local cuisine, along with the online culinary travel and the food documentaries, the number of consumers in various destinations to enjoy new food and wine has risen (Karimi, 2017). This has resulted in a boom for the entire tourism industry, which translates into the growth of the economy of the nation. The inflow of money as a result of more tourists, plus the additional job opportunities in tourism sectors helps the economy. With culinary tourism, the locals are benefitted the most. With the positive aspects, the culinary tourism also has negative impact. As highlighted earlier, the demand for local produce by the toyurists has forced the local farmers into over working and even makes available the products out of season. This deteriorates the flavour of the produce and de-motivates the tourists from coming back again, thus having a negative impact over the economy. In addition to this, the increase pollution, congestion and damage to the landscape by the tourists, hampers the nation as a whole (National Parks, 2016). Future Challenges As this is a niche segment, the number of tourists involved in this tourism sector is considerably less, especially in comparison to tourism like sports or adventure tourism. Moreover, once the food products, as well as the wine produced locally have been enjoyed by the tourists, the return in the nation for the same food and wine products becomes difficult. This is because the consumers in culinary tourism are interested in trying new alternative and new variants of the food and wine products and this creates an obstacle in getting the tourists to return to the nation for culinary tourism purposes. Recommendations On the basis of the challenges summarized above, it is recommended that new ways to presenting the local produce and in a manner which creates life long memories should be undertaken. This would help in attracting the consumers and compel them to revisit. In addition to this, the expectations of the travellers are to be met, in addition to creating cohesive marketing campaigns to promote culinary tourism (Government of Canada, 2014). References Acorn Consulting Partnership Ltd. (2008). Developing a Niche Tourism Market Database for the Caribbean. Retrieved from: https://www.onecaribbean.org/wp-content/uploads/NicheMarketsDatabase.pdf Biazen, T. (2012). Local Food Festivals: Towards Successful Branding and Sustainable Local Food Tourism in stersund. Retrieved from: https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:636711/FULLTEXT01.pdf Canadian Tourism Commission. (2011). Experiences. Retrieved from: https://www.destinationcanada.com/sites/default/files/2016-11/Programs_SignatureExperiences_Toolkit_Experiences_2011_EN.pdf Government of Canada. (2014). Challenges and Opportunities Facing Canada's Tourism Industry. Retrieved from: https://www.tourism.gc.ca/eic/site/034.nsf/eng/00040.html Karimi, S. (2017). What is Culinary Tourism?. Retrieved from: https://traveltips.usatoday.com/culinary-tourism-1910.htmls National Parks. (2011). The impacts of tourism. Retrieved from: https://www.nationalparks.gov.uk/students/ourchallenges/tourism/impactsoftourism Redl, S. (2013). Culinary Tourism for Young Adult Travellers and its connection to Destination Management. Retrieved from: https://www.modul.ac.at/uploads/files/Theses/Bachelor/Thesis-2013-Thesis_final_-_Sabrina_Redl.pdf UNTWO. (2012). Global Report on Food Tourism. Retrieved from: https://cf.cdn.unwto.org/sites/all/files/pdf/global_report_on_food_tourism.pdf