Processes of Tourism Product Development for Communities that Have Sought to Diversify Through Tourism: a Comparative Analysis of New Zealand and British Columbia Case Studies

Abstract

Diversifying through tourism is a popular notion for communities where traditional resource based economies are in decline, or are facing imminent decline. Tourism is often viewed as an attractive and achievable alternative when natural resource extraction becomes unsustainable, methods of resource production improve and labour requirements are reduced, and/or where resource modification projects are completed. The basic premise of this is that there is much to be learnt about how and why communities have sought to diversify and the processes of product development that have evolved in pursuit of this goal. In the absence of previous direct attention to the topic, a conceptual framework is developed from bodies of literature in tourism, management, organization, and geography to compare six diverse case study communities from New Zealand (Napier and Turangi), and British Columbia, Canada (Revelstoke, Chilliwack, the Lower Sunshine Coast, and Tofino). This framework provides a structure to analyse individual case studies and compare commonalities and differences of processes and their implications on the nature of supply. Comparative analysis revealed that at a broad level, communities progressed through a range of phases that following a descision to diversify featured institutional changes, phases of product growth, and adaptation of processes. More specifically, analysis revealed that the effectiveness of processes of processes of product development depended largely on the existence and nature of divers and facilitators and their interrelationships. The research reveals that there is a strong relationship between contextual elements and the nature of processes that evolve, and there is also a strong relationship between the source of the decision to diversify and the nature of processes and product outcomes that occur. Overall, the thesis addresses a topic central to tourism studies that has received minimal attention in the literature. The findings and discussion enhance understanding of the nature of process of product development and provide several practical suggestions for communities seeking to diversify through tourism.