Rural Tourism and Enterprise

Management, Marketing and Sustainability

Ade Oriade, Peter Robinson, Ade Oriade, Peter Robinson

• Publisher: CAB International
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9781780647494
• eBook ISBN: 9781780647524
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Industria dell'ospitalità e del turismo
• Index: Business

Marketing and management processes across industries can be very similar, but contexts vary where political intervention, public interest and local sustainability are involved. The rural business setting is especially intricate due to the assortment of different business opportunities, ranging from traditional agriculture, to tourism enterprise and even high-tech business. This important new textbook on the subject: - Examines key issues affecting rural enterprise and tourism- Explores the breadth of rural enterprise management and marketing across both developed and developing economies- Discusses strategies for business growth within a rural setting, such as knowledge development, proper planning and innovation - Uses a mix of case studies and theoretical content specifically selected to appeal to both student and practitioner readersIncluding pedagogical features and full colour throughout, this new textbook provides an engaging and thought-provoking resource for students and practitioners of tourism, rural business and related industries.

Chapter 1

Rural Enterprise Business Development in the Developed World

Peter Robinson and Alison Murray

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

This chapter considers the development of rural businesses with a focus on tourism enterprises in the developed world, paying particular attention to the challenges faced by such businesses and some of the issues that are common to rural organizations in both the developed and developing world. The objectives of this chapter are:

•To provide an introduction to the context of rural business development.

•To consider the typologies of rural businesses.

•To evaluate the challenges and opportunities presented by opportunities for rural business development.

INTRODUCTION

The agricultural and industrial revolutions of the eighteenth century had a profound impact on the rural landscape of Britain, Europe and, through travel and trade, the rest of the western world. The wealth created through early mass production, and the factory system in urban areas, together with a lack of employment opportunities in rural areas, led to the rapid growth of most industrial cities. As people moved to urban areas for employment and economic reasons, the countryside became popular amongst the newly moneyed to build homes, to invest in farming and to enjoy as a destination, away from the unsanitary conditions found in urban areas.

By contrast, the countries that are today recognized as the developing world benefitted little from advances in technology. Remote, unexplored areas, home to small communities with little access to any infrastructure were visited by few ‘westerners’, and those who could afford to travel did so to gaze upon the people and places of these rural backwaters.

In the twenty-first century, the legacy of these issues is very pertinent to this book. The western world has come to view the countryside predominantly as a place for relaxation, for walking, cycling and other leisure time activities. While social mobility in the western world has made it possible to transition between urban and rural spaces, the developing world still lacks the infrastructure needed for development (or for successful agriculture in places), and whereas developing countries welcome tourists from overseas, there is no significant domestic tourism within these destinations. This means that such places frequently become victims of neo-colonialism, still serving the needs of western tourists.

This chapter explores these issues and considers the rural business context more broadly, before exploring what they mean for tourism and, more importantly, for those who operate tourism businesses within these rural areas. In doing this, the chapter provides a foundation for subsequent discussions in the book.

The need for rural tourism development

Throughout the world, rural communities have been suffering from industry loss and subsequent population loss. As manufacturing and industries leave rural areas, a need for alternative economic opportunities emerges. One such opportunity is the development of tourism. According to the seminal work by Claire Gunn (1988), tourism development occurs with the development of five components (regardless, it should be noted, of whether in a developed or developing world context):

1. Tourism attractions and events.

2. Tourism promotion including marketing strategies and research to inform marketing strategies.

3. Infrastructure and tourism superstructure including roads, hotels, restaurants and access.

4. Service – providing information and services for visitors.

5. Hospitality, which includes not only hospitality services such as hotels and restaurants, but also the host community’s reception of and courtesy towards the tourists.

While this type of development can provide job opportunities and increased economic development to a region, it can also come with economic, environmental and social issues – specifically regarding the cost of living, affordable housing, gentrification and second-home ownership. Despite these potential conflicts and shortcomings, tourism development is often a viable tool for re-building rural regions. It is important, however, to ensure that communities maintain their sense of identity and develop in such a way that the local community’s sense of wellbeing and quality of life are not jeopardized. This can be done via intentional design, controlled growth and community involvement during the development process (Howe et al., 1997).

TYPES OF RURAL BUSINESS

It is common to discuss industries as primary (the production of raw materials – farming), secondary (making things from raw materials – manufacturing) and tertiary (selling things which have been made – retail). Historically there is tendency to include tourism within the tertiary sector, but it is better discussed as a quaternary industry, alongside banking, finance and knowledge economies (e.g. universities). Tertiary industries are really about selling manufactured products, and while tourism is about the manufacturing of experiences, it does not have the same interconnections with other industry sectors and can occur without a particular connection to any form of production industry.

Although agriculture has been the dominant form of (primary) industry in rural areas for millennia, the farming industry has suffered several economic challenges in recent years. In the developing world, the climate has made food production difficult and a lack of raw materials impacts on the supply of foods available at a reasonable and affordable price. In the developed world, these have included (i) over-production of food where supply exceeds demand and prices are consequentially low; (ii) food imports reducing domestic demand; and (iii) pressure from retailers to reduce prices per unit paid to farmers.

In both scenarios agriculture is a difficult industry to work in, and whilst many farms appear to be asset rich (land, equipment, property) they are often cash poor. This has driven many smaller farms to consider diversification into other industries, or a shift in their market position to produce higher quality organic food or to specialize in local produce, thus enabling them to raise the prices they charge for their products. In some instances, these farms have entered the manufacturing sector with on-site butchers, farm shops and the manufacturing of produce such as jams, breads and drinks. This is most commonly seen within the developed world. In the developing world, farmers rely upon fair trade or pro-poor tourism initiatives to increase the monies earned from food production (both development strategies are discussed later in this chapter).

There is also little rural manufacturing (secondary industries) in the developing world – a lack of access and infrastructure sees to that, although small-scale production of food products takes place to meet the needs of local communities and tourists. There is, however, likely to be little opportunity to scale up a business. The only exceptions are those few rare products that attract interest from western businesses who invest in the transport costs to ship these products. In the developed world some manufacturing does take place in rural areas – in particular food production (see Case study 1.1) but other small businesses as well.

Farms, especially those that have scaled down or changed the nature of production, often have vacant buildings available for new business uses. These may be attractive for the farm to diversify directly or to rent space to other businesses (leading to tertiary and quaternary industries). Examples of such developments include: (i) creation of small industrial/trading estates; (ii) creation of craft centres; (iii) development of new farm-related businesses (e.g. cider production); (iv) creation of rentable storage spaces; (v) conversion into self-catering cottages; and (vi) extensions to an existing property to create bed and breakfast rooms.

Case Study 1.1. The Peak District Sustainable Tourism Forum

The Peak District Sustainable Tourism was an EU-funded project developed to support rural businesses in the Peak District National Park. The project had the specific aims of supporting business development and rural economies, creating mechanisms to encourage visitors to stay longer and spend more money within the national park and supporting the management of sustainable development. Associated projects included ‘Foods from the Peak District’ designed to support rural businesses seeking to produce food locally (Food from The Peak District) or to use local produce for catering in hotels, cafes and other hospitality businesses (Peak District Cuisine), and ‘Hospitality and Tourism Training Skills’ that was developed to support rural training opportunities. Of particular interest in this context were a number of small businesses that were supported by one or more of these projects, including:

1. Cocoadance – a traditional Peak District farm which diversified into chocolate manufacturing and chocolate making experiences.

2. Peak District Fine Foods – a mobile catering company offering a range of locally produced food, delivered to events and businesses across the national park.

3. Peak Serenity – a barn conversion to self-catering accommodation within a rural farm environment.

In addition, the project supported over a hundred bed and breakfast businesses, supported the development of self-catering facilities and delivered training courses to support new and existing businesses to develop skills and knowledge around marketing, business development, employment legislation and website development.

RURAL TOURISM ECONOMIES

Tourism is much more complex to explore in a rural development context. First it is necessary to identify the types of tourism businesses that exist within these areas and the types of leisure activities that would be included within these. Tourism is described by Leiper (1990) as the movement of people from a tourist-generating zone to a tourist-destination zone, where they stay for a period of time. Rural tourism is defined as (Killon, 2001, p. 167):

a multifaceted activity that takes place in an environment outside heavily urbanised areas. It is an industry sector characterised by small-scale tourism businesses, set in areas where land is dominated by agricultural pursuits...It should be seen as offering a different range of experiences...[where] the emphasis…is on the tourist’s experience of the produc...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• Editors and Contributors
• Introduction
• 1. Rural Enterprise Business Development in the Developed World
• 2. Selling to Consumers
• 3. Sustainability, Ethics and Social Responsibility: A Developed Economies Perspective
• 4. Community Engagement and Rural Tourism Enterprise
• 5. Social Enterprise and the Rural Landscape
• 6. The Rural Business Environment in Developing Economies
• 7. Marketing, Communications and Rural Business in Developing Countries
• 8. Consumers and Rural Tourism in Developing Economies
• 9. Sustainability and Ethics in Rural Business and Tourism in the Developing World
• 10. Community Engagement, Rural Institutions and Rural Tourism Business in Developing Countries
• 11. Challenges and Strategies for Rural Business Operations in Developed and Developing Economies
• 12. Developing and Growing Knowledge Within Rural Tourism Enterprises
• 13. Collaborate to Innovate: Challenges and Strategies for Rural Business to Innovate
• 14. Strategies for Rural Business Growth
• 15. Opportunities for Growth: The Rural Tourism Policy and Planning Perspective
• Conclusion
• Index
• Back Cover