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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a method for estimating new direct tourism spending resulting from a new event in an existing destination. Design/methodology/approach – Intercept surveys were conducted on site at six of nine festival locations. Of the 308 festival participants approached at random and asked to participate, 264 agreed to participate (86 percent response rate). Upon further inquiry, only 47 percent of those agreeing to participate were found to be from zip codes outside of the Horry/Georgetown County "Grand Strand" tourist area. These 145 festival participants were administered surveys. Findings – Less than 30 percent of total tourist spending at the festival is attributable to new tourists – those who specifically traveled to the destination primarily for the event and have historically attended Myrtle Beach less than one time per year. Consequently, the economic impact of the festival, in terms of new spending, was relatively small compared to the total amount of tourist spending by all tourists at the festival. Originality/value – The study provides an example of an event for which new tourist spending could have been overestimated if all tourist spending had been considered to be new spending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a method for estimating new direct tourism spending resulting from a new event in an existing destination. Design/methodology/approach – Intercept surveys were conducted on site at six of nine festival locations. Of the 308 festival participants approached at random and asked to participate, 264 agreed to participate (86 percent response rate). On further inquiry, only 47 percent of those agreeing to participate were found to be from zip codes outside of the Horry/Georgetown County "Grand Strand" tourist area. These 145 festival participants were administered surveys. Findings – Less than 30 percent of total tourist spending at the festival is attributable to new tourists – those who specifically travelled to the destination primarily for the event and have historically attended Myrtle Beach less than one time per year. Consequently, the economic impact of the festival, in terms of new spending, was relatively small compared with the total amount of tourist spending by all tourists at the festival. Originality/value – The study provides an example of an event for which new tourist spending could have been overestimated if all tourist spending had been considered to be new spending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of consumer sociability and service provider perceived expertise on service relationship success. Design/methodology/approach - A sample of 281 consumers in the USA, randomly selected with the assistance of a commercial list service, completed the survey. Structural equations modeling, was used to test the proposed model. Findings - The findings show that customer sociability and service provider expertise are important to relationship success. In addition, the duration of the relationship was found to be a consequence of satisfaction and a driver of social benefits, which strengthens customer commitment. Research limitations/implications - Personality traits have been previously examined in a low involvement retail setting and not found to be a significant influence on commitment. This study finds that sociability does have a significant impact on service relationship success; thus, providing support for the importance of customer traits in relationship marketing in some contexts. Practical implications - While provider characteristics are expected to influence customer commitment, this study provides evidence that at least one consumer personality trait (i.e. sociability) appears to impact commitment to a provider in high involvement services. Healthcare providers should be aware that the personality of the patient may be a driver of satisfaction with and commitment to the physician, despite the doctor's perceived level of expertise. Originality/value - This research fills a gap in the literature on the link between customer traits and service relationships in a healthcare setting. Since consumers are co-participants in service delivery, it is important to understand how their characteristics impact service relationship success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the subculture of Southern Mardi Gras society in coastal Mississippi and Alabama. Design/methodology/approach – Participant observation was used to explore the subculture as well as depth interviews with 42 informants who participated in Mardi Gras societies and/or balls. Findings – The findings demonstrate that social identity theory is supported in Southern Mardi Gras society and that elements of racial divide, social stratification, and fixity of residence continue to support this subculture. Originality/value – While most who are aware of Mardi Gras traditions associate it solely with New Orleans, this paper presents the rich subculture of Mardi Gras societies that extends along the upper Gulf Coast region of the USA. Tied to tourism in this region, these practices are explored for the nuances of this subculture and the Mardi Gras event myth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this editorial is to introduce the special issue of the International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research (IJCTHR) on "Decoding southern culture and hospitality". Design/methodology/approach – The editorial outlines the primary objective of the IJCTHR special issue and introduces a southern tourism schema. Findings – The special issue serves as a valuable platform for new theory and research that integrates multidisciplinary perspectives in describing, explaining, predicting, and influencing culture, tourism, and hospitality in the US Southern States. This region of the USA is distinguishable from other regions by its cultural values and practices. Tourism in the US South is multi-faceted and includes destination-, ritual-, heritage-, and experiential-based attractions. The articles in the special issue touch on these various aspects of southern-based tourism and reveal its unique attributes as it relates to culture and southern hospitality. Originality/value – This editorial provides an overview of the special issue and highlights key contributions of each paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]