Tourism Investigation

Aim

Since the competition in the tourism sector is increasing at a rapid pace, countries have decided to introduce the food tourism sector in the market to attract more tourists thus keeping an upper hand over other businesses. Being a basic necessity of human life, food will have a psychological influence over tourists who are keen to try out different dishes across the world. This assignment basically focuses on how feasible a food tourism sector is in a place like the West Midlands and Birmingham. Being a place where sectors like automobile, manufacturing and tourism are running successfully, starting a new sector would be easy as well as adventurous as there are not many companies in the same sector to compete with (Rachão et al. 2019). Being a palace where there is a lot of business for the tourism sector, an addition of the food sector might increase the overall business and GDP for the UK. Proper marketing and placement will definitely have a positive indirect effect on other businesses as well.

Objective

Through this assignment we will have a vivid idea about the career/ job opportunities that will be generated with the introduction of food tourism in the market. Since businesses require a lot of employees for different departments, like waiters, chefs, marketers, managers, accountants, etc. therefore it will open a range of new opportunities for every individual looking for a suitable job, be it a fresher or for an experienced one. It also develops goodwill among the local public since the company is generating employment for the locals. Also it will help us know about the positive impacts it is having on the other sectors (Ellis et al. 2018). Having proper strategy helps in spreading a good reputation about the company. Food tourism is a part of the tourism sector. So tourists visiting Birmingham and West Midlands might find a presence of a newly established fooding company trying to grab markets and trying to create an impression, a wiser decision and will grab much more demand than anticipated. We would also be getting to know how sustainable this sector is according to current market trends and demands or whether it will be able to sustain in the long run based on these factors.

Rationale

Since the establishment of activities that are related to food grab a good amount of tourists, it is important to conduct research and to know about the overall taste and preferences of the people over there and also know about the trends regarding food that might occur in the near or distant future. This research will help in developing knowledge about the behaviour of the consumer and their mindset regarding the introduction of a new sector. This research will highly benefit the West Midlands Growth company since they wanted to know how feasible a Food tourism sector in areas like Birmingham and West Midlands (Kim et al. 2018). Conducting this research will give us a clear idea about the thinking pattern of the consumer which will further help in identifying targets and wants of the consumer giving the edge over competitors. Predicting the wants of each and every individual helps in getting to know about the personality traits of people. This will help in introducing a variety of products that will suit a variety of individuals.

Since production of foods is not the only task for the company, there are other factors that affect the business as well, such as hygiene, ambience, taste, etc. these factors will contribute to the overall encouragement of food companies in setting up their companies with a detailed research in mind to work forward to. This project gives a detailed insight into the food tourism field. It will also help in knowing detailed personality traits of individuals,their unique taste and preferences, demands, etc.

Methodology

Setting up a business requires a lot of research and analysis before commencing the project. Researching on the needs and wants of the local people and that of the tourists requires a lot of sources, mainly being the direct sources. Developing questionnaires, having one on one interviews with the public would help in knowing the general thinking of the people about the establishment of the fooding sector in their area (de Jong and Varley, 2018). There are plenty of other external influences other than the demand and thinking of the people that affect the setting up of the business.

Strength: commencing a particular business of a sort which has no existing competition in the market has its own perks. There will be a monopoly in the market, which means whatever prices or trends the business sets has to be accepted by the public and tourists without having to think of a substitute since there is none available. The demand will remain high most of the time because it will not be challenged by any other company of that sort unless it is available. Further there will be much scope of expansion since there will be constant flow of income from the consumers. The company can try different other varieties of products without the fear of being neglected. Being the only one in the market also gives an upper hand over the other suppliers. Since the company is the only buyer and source of revenue for the supplier therefore they do not get to bargain with them. But there being an abundance of suppliers in the market, the company can bargain and mould the prices to an extent they think is reasonable as the earlier will have a fear of losing its source of income. With the advantage of being a monopoly in the market they have the chance to work on all their strengths like working on the menu, decor, introducing different dishes and drinks, which will attract customers. Customer service should become a strong pursuit for the company as it is the service that either mends or breaks the reputation of the company (Everett, 2019). Most companies in any sector consider customer service a secondary issue but it should be the primary focus of every company. Behaviours of staff, timely delivery of food, hygienic ambience, good food quality is important to please the customer as it is the customers that when treated properly would spread the goodwill among other consumers, which will definitely affect the revenue of the company in a positive way. Less time to deliver food and great surroundings for dining should also be a look out for the company.

Weakness: developing a good strategy for setting up a business is a challenge in itself. It requires a lot of planning, effort and a solid mindset so that the startup becomes successful. Many investors do not understand and trust the idea of setting up a whole new different sector and therefore the business does not get the required funds it needs to set up the business. Since a fooding business requires a lot of funds for hiring staff ( Chefs, Waiters/ Waitress, Cleaner, Manager), for stocking up kitchen, furniture and decors for good ambience, backing off in any of these might affect the overall revenue of the business. Setting up a business is not the only thing important (Clancy, 2017). Marketing the business is equally important or else consumers might not take the business seriously.

Opportunities: knowing the culture of the country where business is supposed to set up is a very important research content. The preferred items of the consumers there must be kept in mind. There should be a variety of items ranging from vegan dishes to non-vegan dishes so that consumers feel that the company is considering their wants while also respecting their culture. They must be vested with time to time offers so that goodwill is created in the market which in return will attract more customers (Kim et al. 2019). The sentiments of the employees must also be kept in check as they represent the company. A company with happy employees and satisfied customers is already a successful company.

Threats: while establishing the business the company should also consider the threats that might come with it. It should look after if there is a new company that is being set up in the area that might serve as a competitor, and therefore a threat to the company. The company must stay in trend so that it is not out run by the competitor company. Introduction of new menus consisting of new dishes so that consumers can have a variety of options to choose from gives the company an edge over the other company. Introduction of new competitors would also affect the bargaining power of the existing company over its suppliers as now the suppliers would be having a secondary source of revenue, that is, the newly set up company (Bhoola, 2020). This will hamper the expenses for the existing company. With higher expenses to incur the company will have to raise prices of the drinks and dishes to generate profit which will hence drop the competitive company in an advantageous position since they will serve the same or maybe more dishes and drinks at a comparatively lower price tag. These threats must be kept in check well in advance so that a little variability of expenses does not affect the price list and hence does not affect the overall revenue of the company (Mei et al. 2017). If the company has long waiting hours, or unhygienic food delivery, or poor customer service then consumers will have the option to shift to the substitute company since they will be treated better there. The company’s strategy should be futuristic and therefore avoid being overtaken by the new company in terms of new trends or opportunities.

Literature Review

food tourism has emerged as a different sector in tourism in recent years. Keeping in view the ongoing demand and competition in tourism among countries, they thought it necessary to introduce a new sector in the existing sector so as to stay ahead in competition from many other countries.

Food tourism is the sector which has emerged in the recent time and is booming at a rapid pace. It has boomed tourism in countries and also has raised the bar for competition in tourism among countries. It has a great impact on the increasing GDP in countries and is responsible for the booming of tourist business in different parts of the world. This develops a sense of positivity in the foreign countries about that particular host country as well (Slocum and Curtis, 2017). It also suggests that slowly people are getting aware of this sector and trying to take part and interest in it.

Those who take keen interest in tourism, that is, the tourists find the fooding sector a much more viable and interesting sector in itself. For them consumption of different dishes and drinks is fun and also finding out about the culture of that host country. Dining in, at a different ambience all together suggests a lot about the culture of the people living over there. Their way of thinking, standard of living, suggests a lot about their culture.

It also in a way helps in knowing the different kinds of people that come from different walks of life, their attitudes towards individuals of different cultures. Through the help of it we get to know about the preferences people have towards different kinds of dishes being prepared (Liu et al. 2017). There are people who hate a kind of dish or the company all together who even have the slightest taste of that dish. Then there are people who prefer trying out different dishes as a sense of excitement and eagerness as well as to know about the culture of the host country. Some find the thought of trying new places terrifying and hence depend upon their friends and family to guide them the right way. Some might simply have the intention of trying out British food, whatever be the cost. They might do it out of eagerness or maybe out of pressure to be of aid to others. But they will do it so as to about the fooding and about the locals over there. Few tourists do it out of change for their own taste and preference (Andersson et al. 2017). They might get bored of their regular consumption and a change might be a great opportunity to not only have a different taste to their tongue but also a means to travel the area. Some may have favouritism over the particular British Culture and therefore find the delicacy of that culture a suitable way to start their experience for the culture. Discover additional insights on Application for Bulgaria Visa by navigating to our other resources hub.

Either way tourists have their own motive to try out different delicacies like that of the british. Some find it amusing whereas some find it important to taste and get to know the flavour of that particular dish.

Conclusion

Food tourism is being defined as a factor that is a part of tourism but is a different sector in itself. It is a means of employment generation for the country as a whole and a way to deliver the beauty of the culture to the entire world through means of food. It also depends on the mentality of the local people, that is, it will sustain until the time local food and popularity sustains in that area. Once it is perished so will be the scene of the food tourism in that area. Festivities and occasions are great plus points for the selling of the foods during that time. Festivals attract a lot of tourists and also locals who prefer to dine out instead of dining at home. Hence times like these booms the sales for the fooding company and increases the overall revenue of the company. There are a lot of supporting businesses of food tourism business and the business of food tourism itself that depend dirent on food tourism for its survival. So if food tourism goes down so will be the case of the other companies that depend on it, that is, they will go down too. Every supporting and dependent business depends on the future of this food tourism sector. The better the future for tourism, the better it will be for the companies depending on it. Food tourism also depends on the overall tourism sector of the company. The better the tourism sector is doing the better will be the fate of the fooding sector. It all performs under chain systems. Food tourism not only serves as a means of employment generation but also as a means of local and economic development of the entire country as a whole. There are countries that wholly depend on tourism as a means for increment of their GDP. for this planning is utmost important as it defines how successful this food sector will be in the upcoming future. There are opinions that might form in the minds of the tourists about other than food only. There are other factors that might be kept in mind to not only create goodwill among locals but have a positive impact on the minds of tourists as well. As they are the prime focus of this sector, they must be satisfied and all the other factors like ambience, surrounding, customer service like behaviour hygienic, need and wants of them must be kept in mind so that the business runs successfully.

References

Andersson, T.D., Mossberg, L. and Therkelsen, A., 2017. Food and tourism synergies: Perspectives on consumption, production and destination development.

Bhoola, S., 2020. Halal Food Tourism: Perceptions of Relevance and Viability for South African Destinations. African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure, 9(3), pp.288-301.

Clancy, M. ed., 2017. Slow Tourism, Food and Cities: Pace and the Search for the" good Life". Routledge.

de Jong, A. and Varley, P., 2018. Food tourism and events as tools for social sustainability?. Journal of Place Management and Development.

Ellis, A., Park, E., Kim, S. and Yeoman, I., 2018. What is food tourism?. Tourism Management, 68, pp.250-263.

Everett, S., 2019. Theoretical turns through tourism taste-scapes: the evolution of food tourism research. Research in Hospitality Management, 9(1), pp.3-12.

Kim, S., Choe, J.Y. and Lee, S., 2018. How are food value video clips effective in promoting food tourism? Generation Y versus non–Generation Y. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 35(3), pp.377-393.

Kim, S., Park, E. and Lamb, D., 2019. Extraordinary or ordinary? Food tourism motivations of Japanese domestic noodle tourists. Tourism Management Perspectives, 29, pp.176-186.

Liu, S.Y., Yen, C.Y., Tsai, K.N. and Lo, W.S., 2017. A conceptual framework for agri-food tourism as an eco-innovation strategy in small farms. Sustainability, 9(10), p.1683.

Mei, X.Y., Lerfald, M. and Bråtå, H.O., 2017. Networking and collaboration between tourism and agriculture: food tourism experiences along the National Tourist Routes of Norway. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, 17(1), pp.59-75.

Rachão, S., Breda, Z., Fernandes, C. and Joukes, V., 2019. Food tourism and regional development: A systematic literature review. European Journal of Tourism Research, 21(1), pp.33-49.

Slocum, S.L. and Curtis, K.R., 2017. Food and agricultural tourism: Theory and best practice. Routledge.

Tabl.com, 2021. What is Food Tourism? | Book an Experience with Tabl.com. [online] Tabl.com. Available at: [Accessed 8 August 2021].