A Cross-Cultural Comparison of New Implemented Sustainable Wine Tourism Strategies during the COVID-19 Crisis

Abstract

To compensate for loss of business during the COVID-19 crisis, wineries in the tourism industry had to apply new strategies. In order to collect and compare these newly developed sustainable strategies, a cross-cultural study has been conducted in 2021. This study is based on a qualitative survey using purposeful sampling with key decision-makers of 70 wineries from the U.S., Australia, Germany, Hungary, and Romania covering wine growing countries both from the Old and New World. The aim was to identify new and sustainable initiatives and resilience strategies implemented to deal with the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, noting any cultural differences in each country’s response and to analyse the perspectives of wine tourism in the future. The findings highlight the wineries’ impressive focus on creativity and flexibility while also bringing attention to cultural differences. The insights form a preliminary suggestion for best practice strategies that businesses within wine tourism may consider helpful in their future business planning.

Digital Winescape and Online Wine Tourism: Comparative Insights from Crete and Santorini

“…Notable exceptions explore the trend of online wine tastings during lockdowns [14] and the impact of virtual wine tours on consumers' purchase decisions [15]. Quite recently, Szlonoki et al (2022) explored whether the aforementioned interventions could lead to sustainable structural change [16].…”

A bibliometric review of research in wine tourism experiences: insights and future research directions

“…Recently, COVID-19-induced changes in wine tourism operations have been studied (Szolnoki et al , 2022; Wittwer and Anderson, 2021). Have wine tourists’ preferences changed post-COVID-19?…”

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“…However, the pandemic-induced financial setback forced the historically traditional wine industry, significantly less digitalised than other industries, to rapidly realise the importance of up-to-date technology (Halmari 2020). Wineries embraced digital tools to adapt their business model and strategies to stay viable to fit the rapidly changing trading environment (Szolnoki et al 2022), albeit with regional disparities. American and Australian wineries proactively ventured into the digitalisation of wine tourism following the introduction of worldwide lockdowns.…”

“…American and Australian wineries proactively ventured into the digitalisation of wine tourism following the introduction of worldwide lockdowns. The entrepreneurial drive to seize new opportunities and learn by doing, strongly motivated by the vision of progressive owners, was cited as a powerful force to unite staff and survive, but thrive, during the crisis (Szolnoki et al 2022). It is essential to note that wineries in America and Australia had already begun experimenting with virtual reality tools to enhance wine tourism marketing years before the pandemic struck.…”

“…In contrast, the Old World European countries initially exhibited a cautious approach toward engaging in the virtual space. They were, perhaps, culturally more reluctant to adopt new technologies when the return on investment had not yet been proven, and the urgency was not so apparent (Szolnoki et al 2022). Once the Old World became fully aware of the attributes of virtual wine tourism offerings, they adopted their preferred virtual engagement strategies.…”