ANALYZING THE CORRELATION ASPECT LINKING CONSUMPTION OF WINE AGAINST UNDERSTANDING WINE TOURISM AT THE SILICON VALLEY OF INDIA: UNCORKING WINE TOURISM IN BANGALORE

1AVIN THALIATH

Scholar, Jain University, India

2DR. D.N.S KUMAR

Christ University, Bangalore, India

ABSTRACT

This paper makes an attempt to analyze the correlation aspect linking consumption of wine against understanding wine tourism. Altering habits of Indians in drinking has changed the fortunes of wine industry in India. Both the Indian wine market and indigenous wine industry are witnessing a tremendous growth. Wine tourism is not only about just drinking wines but there are other activities adjured with the same. Favorable and promotional government policies, higher disposable incomes and growth in foreign tourists are some of the reasons for such growth. Tourism is lively with dynamic growth, new activities, new destination, new technology, new markets and rapid changes.

KEY WORDS: Wine, Vines, Tourism, Wine Tourism development and management, Karnataka grape wine policy.

INTRODUCTION

Wine Tourism is “travelling for the purpose of experiencing wineries, wine regions and their links to life style. Wine tourism encompasses both service provision and destination marketing” Tourism can be said as the relationship arising from the interaction of the tourist, business suppliers, host government and host communities in the process of attracting and hosting these tourist and other visitors. Customer’s satisfaction, safety and enjoyment are the main focus of the tourism businesses. (Goeldner and Ritchie, 2010).

FTA (foreign tourist arrivals) as per 2011 is 6.58 million, 4.3% growth. (Bureau of Immigration, Government of India, 97-2012, Ministry of Tourism, 2013). Introduction of Karnataka grape wine policy 2008-2009, has opened a new range of opportunities to wine farmers.

Presently 1.1 crore litres production per annum is likely to multiply to 7.2crores litres over the next seven years. Grapes are being grown in an area of 10,000 acres and the estimated industry size is about 1050 crores of rupees (India Tourism Statistics, 2012). The factors are apt for converting Bangalore as a wine tourism destination. How Bangalore be benchmarked for the development and management of wine tourism, if wine tourism is considered as a product? As per the statistics 6,750 families are employed by the winery which is likely to increase to 13,500. It also provides indirect employment of 10,500 families which is likely to increase up to 24,000 in 2020 (All India Wines Association, 2012). The recent statistics proclaims that 6 million bottles are sold yearly and per capita consumption of 4.5 ml against 375 ml in china (Chakravarthy, 2010). Wine tourism is acclaimed to be ‘growing area of special interest’ tourism throughout the world (Raut and Bhakey, 2012). The importance of growing wine tourism in a city like Bangalore is remarkably to be mentioned, as the niche tourism segment has wide area of benefits from foreign-exchange earnings, job opportunities, long term wealth and secondary economic stability. Number of Foreign Tourist visits to Karnataka in 2012 is 5, 95,359 people (India Tourism Statistics, 2012, Government of Tourism). As per the individual research conducted by Alpine Wineries 1-2 % of these visitors both domestic and international visitors are wine tourists. (Srihari,2014).

People have been making and drinking wine for the thousands of years, but only recently have wineries and wine regions begun to create experiences for tourists wanting to see where their favourite bottle of red wine was made. Tours and tastings were only the beginning; now wineries from South Africa to Australia are becoming centres of cultures where wine, food, hospitality and arts come together in many exciting ways.

WINE TOURISM-INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL PERSPECTIVE

 Getz (2000) suggests that the demographic shift in society towards an older population, retiring younger with high discretionary spending, will lead to `glory days' for wine tourism over the next decade. Wine tourism (Hall, Sharples & Cambourne, 2004), is a rapidly growing field of industry and academic interest with changes in the consumer markets in recent years, showing an enormous interest in 'experiential' travel. Carlsen & Charters (2002) reviews that Wine regions are attracting increasing numbers of tourists through tours, wine festivals and winery, restaurant and cellar door experiences.

Wine tourism has been defined by a number of different authors, all attempting to appropriately incorporate the unique mix of a winery’s character, the tourism product and regional identity. For the purpose of this research, the definition developed by Hall and Macionis (1998) will be employed, which described wine tourism as: “visitation to vineyards, wineries, wine festivals and wine shows for which grape wine tasting and/or experiencing the attributes of a grape wine region are the prime motivating factors for visitors.” (Hall et al. 2000).

WINE TOURISM –INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE

ACIL Consulting (2002) released a report on small to medium wineries in Australia and found that government assistance is widely needed to support the growth of the wine tourism industry. They suggest that public infrastructure, signage, the creation of wine routes, and the need for region-wide marketing initiatives are vital, as most wineries lack the funding or authority to create their external tourism product independently. Similarly, suggestions were made in an international review of wine tourism and its value to small and medium wineries by Hall et al. (2000) and wine and food tourism (Hall et al. 2003). In addition, Beverland (1998) suggests that although a wine tourism focus appears to be a positive strategy in a difficult operating environment, winery owners need to ensure that they have a potential market before investing substantial capital into the creation of a wine tourism product. The challenge for operators entering the wine tourism industry is further compounded by the limited academic or industry research into exactly who the wine tourist is, and their needs or expectations at the cellar door.

At the start of the new millennium this diversity of views on the potential benefits and costs of wine tourism (King and Morris, 1998a, b) evolved into an industry-relevant, multidisciplinary and pragmatic research agenda. Mainly conducted by universities in collaboration with government, tourism and wine industry agencies, the wine tourism research outputs have been pragmatic and relevant to the needs of industry and government. What is lacking in this applied research approach is an over-arching theoretical framework under which pure, curiosity-driven research into the phenomenon of wine tourism can be investigated. Two attempts to frame wine tourism research have emerged in the literature that could be classified as macroeconomic and microeconomic in their approach.

India is in its infancy stage in the development of wine tourism. But it is interestingly important to note its growth at the rate of 30% (India Wine Industry Report, 2009). A developing nation like India with three major states in growing vines also being a country famous for its traditional values and Gandhian thoughts this growth is impressive.         

WINE TOURISM AS A PRODUCT-MARKETING PROSPECTIVE

Many wine regions and tourism destinations have realized that the benefits of wine tourism extend well beyond the cellar door to virtually all areas of the regional economy and into the urban areas that generate the majority of wine tourists. Wine, food, tourism and the arts collectively comprise the core elements of the wine tourism product and provide the lifestyle package that wine tourists aspire to and seek to experience. This product-based approach is exemplied in the definition given in the Winemakers' Federation of Australia (1998) National Wine Tourism Strategy: `visitation to wineries and wine regions to experience the unique qualities of contemporary Australian lifestyle associated with enjoyment of wine at its source i.e. including wine and food, landscape and cultural activities'. This definition and approach has given rise to a range of studies of the many products and places that comprise wine tourism (Getz, 2000; Hall et al., 2000; Carlsen and Dowling, 2001; Dodd and Beverland, 2001; Telfer, 2001; Williams, 2001; Getz, 2002; Lane and Brown, 2004; Loubser, 2004; Roberts and Deery, 2004; Sanders, 2004; Sparks and Malady, 2004).

Dowling & Carlsen, (1998) At the First Australian wine tourism conference held in 1998 set the parameters of wine tourism research and explored the potential synergies of two very successful sectors i.e. wine and tourism. These synergies include the promotion of wine regions and events through tourism, increased cellar door sales to tourists, added value to regional production and new business opportunities in wine tourism. However, some potential conflicts were also identified, not the least of which was the belief that wine tourism benefits tourism operators more than wineries (Macionis, 1999; Hall and Johnson, 1999). Some wineries were fearful of tourists who were merely interested in drinking free wine rather than tasting wine, `mobile drunks' seeking intoxication rather than education. There were also issues around connecting land-use options associated with the rapid growth of wine tourism in wine regions, as pressure to develop tourism threatened to subsume land under vines (Skinner, 2000; Carlsen and Ali- Knight, 2004).

Getz (2000) Proposed that the research priorities for wine tourism should be based on wine consumers, wine tourists, marketing effectiveness, and success factors for wineries and destinations (Getz et al., 1999). Dodd and Beverland (2001) also took a microeconomic, organizational life-cycle view of winery tourism to identify strategies for successful wine tourism development.

WINE TOURISM IN INDIA-REVIEWING INDIAN LITERATURE

 According to Dr. Chakravarthy, Indian tourist graduates to 'themed tourism’; the wine tourism though at the infant stage is likely to grow quicker. Indian Wine quality is yet to be proved globally. Offering technical assistance to the farmers, easy license and tax concessions to investors is likely to increase consumption and exports. Innovative deals and competitive packages have to be developed by the vineyards. By bringing in knowledgeable managers, organized wine tours, quality wine tasting rooms, quality accommodation and transportation facilities can create a huge demand. Wine research institute which Agro Processing Ministry intends to establish would definitely promote production, consumption and the marketing of wine, provides an arena to educate farmers in quality grapes and quality wines. Introducing oenology as a discipline in the universities, wine resorts, spas and restaurants, wine festivals, conferences etc are gaining popularity among the wine patrons.

 Raut and Bhakay (2010) observes that as a new world wine country, Indian wine companies or regions cannot replicate the wine tourism model developed by old world countries, despite having a culture and traditions stretching back for many centuries. The model of the new world was created to generate new customers and it better adapted to wine tourism because it was developed in parallel with the creation of new markets. The wine tourism in Maharashtra, especially the Nasik region, is still at a nascent stage and needs a proper tourism development plan. Conscious collaborative efforts are required from the wine and tourism industries to come together and form a wine tourism development board. Such board or body should own the overall wine tourism road map and will remain committed to finance and support its implementation. A long term development program needs to be undertaken which includes development of overall road infrastructure for better accessibility, affordable accommodation and restaurants, accessibility to airports, uninterrupted access to basic amenities like water and electricity, tourism information centre for tourist guidance, enthusiastic wine clubs and tasting centers, Indian wine history museum, corporate tie up for corporate events, theme-based wine festivals, wine by-products i.e. beauty products, souvenirs and spas etc. The wine tourism board also needs to undertake measures which include integrating wine tourism marketing with other state and national level tourism marketing drives. Wine tourism marketing should be taken to the next level of using international tourism channels like Incredible India, Agro-tourism and Indian tourism.

Patti (2009) emphasizes how quality wines can help to valorize and promote the Italian territories throughout the creation of tourist thematic itineraries, such as Wine and Food Routes (WFRs). Actually, they represent a form of alternative tourism and are a powerful instrument for developing a territory–production–tourism pattern. It is evident that WFRs form an integral part of the Italian wine tourism industry; as Bruwer (2003) highlighted, they are the roadways to the core attraction in wine tourism, the wines and the winery. The WFRs other than exploiting the itineraries characterized by grape wine production, concentrate themselves in the promotion of rural traditions and typical agriculture and gastronomy of the various Italian localities.

WINES-FUTURE MARKETS AND CULTURAL HINDRANCES IN INDIA

Consuming wine in India is a matter of status, acceptance and sophistication. But the increase in the education and awareness (frequent travelling and onsite work opportunity, visitation to wine countries) people especially youth and women understanding the health benefits had joined the wine –drinking trend. A great reason what the wine educators see in the growth of wine market in India is their increased disposable income, wine marketing and the influence wine made in the culture centricity of developed nations.

In a nutshell what would be the actual reasons preferred by people for having wine over beer and spirits are taste, food and wine harmony and health benefits. Women prefer wine over beer is mainly due to taste and smell. One of the barriers in the growth of wine is that wine is an entrant, it’s a new culture for Indians, drinking wine at home is a big ‘no”, but the trend is changing. Another reason why wine marketing is hindered is the obvious reason of comparing wines or classifying it as liquor. Any bars or liquor shops are called as ‘wine shop’.

The culture barrier conjured with the above said hindrance, might be one of the main reasons why wine took long time to penetrate into the minds of people. Recent survey reveals that imported wine and its consumption is by the affluent middle class and upper class population; where urban population in India steadily grows at an annual rate of 2% and is projected to reach 395 million in 2016. The most populous cities over 4 million inhabitants include Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kolkata, and Surat (census board, 2001).  The GDP is steadily growing with the rate of between 6% and 9 %.( Wine consumers marketing, 2010).  

Another aspect about wine marketing would be the regulations in wine and spirit advertising in India. Indian governments import tariffs have grown up to 150 %, typical excise duty is of 12.6%. World health organization (WHO) says that about 67% of Indian men and 92% of Indian females are life time alcoholic abstainers. Percapita consumption of Alcohol in India is 5.4 liters in 2011. However consumption of wines by women at home is still a taboo as part of the cultural mindsets; also ‘irresponsibility’ in front of the children. Influence of media and cinemas had removed this cultural hindrance making both men and women socially acceptable to drink alcohol.  

Indian teen comprises of 31.8% of 1.136 billion people (census bureau of India) have a spending power of 10.5 billion dollars which is expected to rise at the rate of 12 % per annum; also account for the consumption of 32% of every day consumer products. (Nivedita, 2008). The lateral shift from the drinking habits among the Indians from hard liquor to wines shows the prospective of wine sales in the country. The sales of wine have grown by 14.4 % (CAGR) during 2008-2011 (Indian Wine Industry report, 2008). Along with the growth in wines also the perception of wine, tourism aspect also changed for Indian tourists also for global tourists. The importance given by the State Governments in promoting wines and wine tourism, also the opportunity taken by the vineyard owners in India in the last six years is notably significant.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Title: Analyzing the correlation aspect linking consumption of wine against understanding wine tourism at the silicon valley of India: Uncorking wine tourism in Bangalore.

OPERATIONAL DEFINITION

Wine tourism has been defined as `visitation to vineyards, wineries, wine festivals and wines shows for which grape wine tasting and/or experiencing the attributes of a grape wine region are the prime motivating factors for visitors.

 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

• To analyse the correlation aspect linking consumption of wine against understanding wine tourism in Bangalore.
• To understand the knowledge of Oenology among the tourists and the consumption pattern as well.

NEED FOR THE STUDY

• In developed countries like France, Italy, USA etc. have emerged the wines sales with the tourism aspects which used to go hand in hand.
• In the wine map of the country Bangalore always had a prominent position. And never thought of exploring its prospects as a wine tourism destination.
• In 2009 Mumbai have emerged themselves as a market leader in wine tourism, Bangalore was always described as a heritage destination or an IT Hub.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The present study is confined to Bangalore which promotes vine cultivation due to its temperate climate, warm sunny days, cool nights along with and combination of rich, well drained soil which excellently compliment the growth of this cultivation.

The pedagogy of the study included a standardized questionnaire which was run through reliability test conferring the chronbach alpha with the score 0.7. Since the test is tested positive, this standardized questionnaire was taken ahead for data collection.

HYPOTHESES

There is no significant relationship between wines Consumption against understanding/executing wine tourism.

SAMPLE SIZE

The population of the survey consists of 150 local residents, domestic tourists and international tourists who visit Bangalore city and a number of 14 grape vine farmers has been taken as respondent for the study.

DATA COLLECTION

Both primary data and secondary data have been used in collecting information for the study. Primary data is collected with the help of structured questionnaire. Secondary data is collected on the base of articles and other publications on the topic from books, websites, journals etc.

STATISTICAL TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES USED FOR THE STUDY

Statistical tools used for the study:

• For the analysis of demographic data percentage analysis is used
• Correlation is used to find the relationship between elements
• To check the goodness of the data, reliability analysis is used.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

• This study is based on data collected from the Bangalore city and the findings should not be generalized and true for all types of tourism.
• The results of this study may not be generalized beyond the range represented by a sample.  
• The result of the survey is based on the respondents, chance of bias is present.

The awareness among the sample size about the wine tourism was perplexedly interesting. 103 of 150 claims themselves about the awareness or wine tourism were as 32 accept the awareness to some extends and the rest are not aware about the concept called wine tourism.

In order to analyze the concept of wine tourism better, the researchers were curious about the source of the information. 17 came to know about wine tourism from the travel agency, were as 20 of them got assistance to know about wine tourism from the family and friends. For 14 of them travel brochures played as the resource for the information were as for 29 of them travel guides were the information resource. TV, internet and radio informed about wine tourism for 19, 9 and 8% respectively.

To quench the understanding about wine tourism, researchers made an attempt to diagnose “what is wine tourism” in terms of their understanding. For 5 of them wine tourism was just a visit to vineyard, 3 of them said visit to vineries is wine tourism meant to them. 8 of them limited themselves to attending the wine fests and shows as wine tourism, 18 of them agreed that wine tourism is restricted only to the purchase of wine from the first source were as for 28 of them getting wine education is the essence of wine tourism. 88 i.e. 59% vouch for all the above aspects as wine tourism

62% agrees that they have visited a wine tourism destination were as a minor percentage of 40(%) have never got a chance to visit a wine tourism destination.

49 of the participants learn about wine tours from the universal media newspaper were as 23 of them depended on flyers, 18 of them learn when they passed by the location, 18 of them learned it when recommended by someone and the second majority 42 from other means.

128 of the entire population are connoisseurs of wine were as 14% of them (22 participants) were yet to consume the realities of wine.

29 participants consume wine only on special occasions or on social gatherings, 20 of them consume wine once a week. 22 of them consume wine 3-5 times maybe and 57 (38%) consumes every day

Majority participants buy wines from super market. 18% of the total population directly buys from vineyards and 20% of them buy it from the wine lounge.

The majority of the participants have just partial knowledge on Oenology were as 50 participants claim to have knowledge on oenology were as the minority of 25 participants says that they have only very little knowledge on oenology.

Consumption vs. understanding wine tourism

FINDINGS OF THE STUDY

The chi square value is less than the critical value and there is no association between the variables. Hence the null hypothesis is accepted and the alternative hypothesis is rejected. Chi square value = 5.040. Degree of freedom = 5, Critical value = 11.07.  Results prove that there is no relation between consumption of wines and understanding wine tourism.

CONCLUSION

Growing scenario of wine tourism has pulled various stakeholders in to the trade thereby meeting the consumer expectation with highest significance. Predominantly, the policy makers, community and other private participants have played significant role in globalizing the Bangalore’s potential for wine tourism. It is important and critical to understand that models adopted by old world country as a part to promote wine and tourism independently or together, is difficult to be implemented as the very fact of difference in culture, economical status, religious factors etc. The wine tourism in Bangalore is at its infancy stage. Conscious effort is to be taken for the development of this niche tourism segment. Proper development plan with contributions from the government as well as private bodies is the most crucial factor here. Public private partnership is very critical as the wine industries are under the state alcoholic policies and requires a lot of leverage for its development. Wine and tourism industries have to hold hands together to implement this effectively. In the wine map of the country Karnataka always had a prominent position and never thought of exploring its prospects for developing it as a destination. Introduction of wine policy, wine club, declaring wine as a food and agro industry etc was an important step taken to promote wine and the industry. But then to exploring its highest potential is the biggest challenge Bangalore faces today.

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