Marketing / Communications
Articles
“New Opportunities to Package and Promote U.S. Cultural and Heritage Tourism with Shopping,”
by Rosemary Rice McCormick,
America’s Byways Resource Center; Vistas, September/October 2005
Authentic Experiences: Opportunities to Package and Promote U.S. Cultural and Heritage Tourism
People who love to travel also love to shop. They love to explore historic homes, catch the latest Broadway musical or hike through a forest of towering redwood trees when visiting the United States. Global travelers want to give more than their credit cards a workout. They want to expand their minds by delving into the culture and ethnicity of the places they are visiting.
What differentiates a typical tourist from a cultural/heritage shopper tourist? A recent study shows they stay longer and are far more likely to carve out time for art galleries, museums, concerts, cultural or historic sites, or national parks, as well as shopping. Cultural shopper tourists visit more destinations while within the U.S. and they’re more likely to be leisure travelers. Overall, they’re more affluent and spend more while contributing to global understanding through cultural exchange and commerce. It’s a win/win partnership to package shopping with cultural and heritage tourism.
This is the conclusion of Taubman Centers, Inc., a leading U.S. shopping center developer, and the U.S. Department of Commerce/Office of Travel Tourism Industries (OTTI). Two organizations recently collaborated and released a study examining the correlation between shopping and cultural/heritage tourism. OTTI compiled data from in-flight surveys completed by international travelers as they exited the U.S.
Shopping continues to rank the highest on the list of activities overall for international travelers while visiting the United States. Nine out of ten overseas and Mexican air travelers shop during their visits to the U.S., spending over $6 billion on gifts and souvenirs. That’s an average of over $350 per person, per trip. These conservative figures do not include spending for non-gift related apparel, accessories and household items, categories that are not tracked by the OTTI in-flight survey.
The United Kingdom currently generates more cultural shopper tourists to the U.S. than any other overseas market, twice the number from runner-up Germany and far out distancing other top markets: Japan, France, and Mexico (air). Cultural shopper tourists (those who both shop and participate in a cultural or heritage activity such as attending a concert or visiting a national park or museum) are 33% of the total. They report longer stays of at least two more nights and higher-on-average spending levels than general travelers. Cultural shopper tourists also visit a greater number of States and are more likely to be new-to-market travelers.
Selling Shopping Tours
Shop America Alliance (SSA) is an exclusive trade association representing over 200 of the leading shopping destinations in the U.S., including shopping centers, retailers, outlets and major shopping destinations - Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale, Chicago, Bloomington (Minnesota), New Orleans, San Diego, as well as state shopping programs in California, Florida, Virginia, and Arizona. Shop America Tours is a division of SSA that develops and markets packaged tours online at http://www.shopamericatours.com and in partnership with major tour operators including Mark Travel (Southwest Vacations, Funjet, United Vacations), Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, MLT, Leverty GoGo, Kintetsu, Allied Tours, Gulliver’s, and more. Capitalizing on the growing trend in Dynamic Packaging, were travelers create their own packages online by selecting where they want to stay and what they want to do, Shop America Tours sells thousands of shopping tours each year to visitors around the world.
These packages are commissionable to the tour operator and travel agents and do not include hotels, featuring the experiential added value to the guest. Top selling Shop America Tours include Shop & Shuttle, Shop & Play, Shop & Dine, Shop & Spa/Beauty, Bridal Shopper, Men of Style, and new in Las Vegas: Shop & Golf.
“We understand the important link between shopping and cultural and heritage tourism, so we are actively seeking opportunities to feature cultural and heritage experiences in Shop America Tours packages. Cultural and heritage attractions can revive revenue from the incremental sales and exceptional exposure to online travel shoppers worldwide,” explained Michael O’Connell, Shop America’s Executive Director. “Ideas include Shop & Culture, Shop & Show, and we are open to any and all creative packaging ideas that also feature shopping.”
Karen MacDonald, Director of Communications at Taubman, added, “It’s clear that international travelers play a significant roles in the American retail market place. This study illustrates the value of combining shopping with cultural and heritage tourism to create a more well-rounded travel experience for the international travelers.” Taubman Centers have developed Cultural Shopping Tourism packages at Cherry Creek in Denver, as well as other markets to cross-sell shopping with cultural heritages experiences.
EDITORS NOTE
Rosemary Rice McCormick serves as President of Shop America Alliance, which represents over 200 of the leading shopping Tourism Destinations in North America, publishes Shop America magazine and markets shopping tours. Visit www.shopamericavip.com and www.shopamericatours.com. Shop America is the proud producer of the U.S. Cultural & Heritage Tourism Summit, and industry milestone event presented by the U.S. Department of Commerce and the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. For more information, visit www.uscht.com.
