DEVELOPING A PROFILE OF VISITORS AT A NORTH CAROLINA WINE FESTIVAL: PILOT TEST, SPRING 2009.

The purpose of this study was to test an existing instrument to determine if patrons at a local wine festival exhibited homogeneous psychographic characteristics that included visitors' attitudes, interest, opinions, and personal preferences. During the "Vin de Mer" event at the 2009 Beaufort (NC) Wine and Food Festival, the researchers asked visitors to complete a survey instrument developed by researchers from Texas Tech University. Fifty-one (51) usable instruments were collected from individuals at this event. Using a multivariate general linear modeling technique, study findings indicated that patrons were homogeneous with regard to these psychographic characteristics when compared with certain demographic characteristics. Future research projects are planned for wineries, wine festivals, and wine shops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]