Consumer perceptions towards sustainable supply chain practices in the hospitality industry

Abstract

This study investigates the impacts of economic, social and environmental sustainability practices of companies in the hospitality supply chain on consumers' satisfaction, loyalty and willingness to pay higher prices. Utilising data collected from 288 tourists visiting south Sardinia, the study indicates that while economic sustainability practices have positive impacts on consumers' satisfaction, loyalty and willingness to pay a premium, sustainability practices related to environmental and social dimensions have a direct positive impact on satisfaction and an indirect positive impact on consumer loyalty and willingness to pay a premium. Additionally, findings reveal that satisfaction is likely to mediate the impact of environmental and social sustainability practices on the loyalty of consumers. The theoretical and managerial implications of the study are provided.

Sustainability Practices in Hospitality: Case Study of a Luxury Hotel in Arrábida Natural Park

“…Environmental practices used in the hotel industry include, among others, the purchase of environmentally friendly products, the use of environmentally friendly cleaning products, energy and water-saving practices, and the selective collection of solid waste [6,25,44]. According to Kasim et al [29], the water consumption of the hotel is determined by several factors: the infrastructure and its age, efficiency, and configuration as well as the multiplicity of water use devices and the practices and behaviors of guests and employees.…”

“…Shared values refer to the policies and practices that improve a company's competitiveness while promoting social, environmental, and economic conditions in the communities where the company operates. Social sustainability practices also include local initiatives related to alleviating education and poverty [6,49], charitable donations [6,56], voluntary actions [6,57], creating long-term partnerships with suppliers, treating all consumers fairly, providing high-quality services and products and a safe environment for consumers, and organizing activities with local community [6].…”

“…These practices help the organization to concretize the triple bottom line goal in which "long term success of a corporation and its environment requires emphasis on all three dimensions of sustainability-economic, environmental (natural environment), and social (social environment)" ( [5], p. 13). Environment sustainability practices in the hotel industry include, among other things, furnishing rooms with environmental-friendly materials, using water-saving toilets in bathrooms, recycle cooking oil, and implementing energy saving programs [6]. However, social sustainability practices include, among other things, investing in training and employee development, listening to employees' suggestions, encouraging hotel employees to take part in various kinds of social events, donating to the community, providing guests with high-quality services and a safe environment, and paying hotel's suppliers for their services and supplies on time [6].…”

“…Environment sustainability practices in the hotel industry include, among other things, furnishing rooms with environmental-friendly materials, using water-saving toilets in bathrooms, recycle cooking oil, and implementing energy saving programs [6]. However, social sustainability practices include, among other things, investing in training and employee development, listening to employees' suggestions, encouraging hotel employees to take part in various kinds of social events, donating to the community, providing guests with high-quality services and a safe environment, and paying hotel's suppliers for their services and supplies on time [6]. Economic sustainability practices are related to cost control (e.g., low operational costs, low labor costs), income growth (e.g., high occupation rate growth, high-profit growth), and expansion of market share (e.g., rate of new product introduction to market, advertising and marketing intensity) [6].…”

Sustainability Perceptions in Tourism and Hospitality: A Mixed-Method Bibliometric Approach

“…Articles focusing on tourists' perceptions address topics such as tourism's economic, sociocultural, and environmental impacts [37], as well as the importance of tourist satisfaction and consumer loyalty [38,39]. Other specific topics addressed by these articles are: destinations' ability to become sustainable [40], considering the three key sustainability principles (economic, environmental, and sociocultural sustainability), the benefits that sustainable tourist behavior brings to destinations [40,41], the direct and indirect impacts (both positive and negative) of sustainable development [39,42,43], perceptions of tourist services [41,44], the role of communication in improving sustainability perceptions [45], perceptions of hotel services' usefulness [41], ecological impacts, destination planning and critical factors of sustainable energy [46], perceptions of visitors' impacts on destinations [47,48], and the effect of climate change on destination sustainability [49,50].…”