Question

Role of souvenir sellers in the development of tourism of the destination

Answer 1

Answer:

Talking about the role of souvenirs in tourism, it is considered an important component of the

tourist experience. They are closely connected to a large number of other phenomena namely cultural,

social and economic, such as consumption and globalisation (Goss, 2004), materiality, identity, and

culture (Morgan & Pritchard, 2005), and shopping (Timothy, 2005).

Shopping is said to be the most universal of all tourist activities and a tremendously important

leisure pursuit. Taking home mementos and souvenirs as evidence hold great symbolic value related to

pleasurable travel experiences and memories the owner associates. The acquisition of mementos and

souvenirs is a recognised act related with many activities, including leisure and other travel experiences as

few people will go for a vacation without purchasing some form of evidence to capture the experiences

and memories (Gordon, 1986; Littrell et al., 1994).

Selling souvenirs has been repeatedly considered an effective way for communities to take

economic advantage from tourism, especially in rural or poor areas. Many studies prove that among

the tourist activities shopping is the major one (Fairhurst, Costello, and Holmes 2007; Kim and Littrell

2001), and especially the souvenir purchases form a very important component of the travel expense

(Littrell et al. 1994; Lehto et al. 2004).

Answer 2

Answer:

Souvenirs are universal artifacts of tourism. They function as symbolic reminders, commodities linked through shopping and retail, and objects in the commodification of material culture. Sacredness theory is used to explain souvenirs phenomena. Souvenirs are studied quantitatively, qualitatively, and through the mixed‐method approach. The focus of souvenirs scholarship embraces theoretical and practical marketing implications for tourists, tourism entrepreneurs, governmental agencies, and residents of tourism destinations. Many themes are associated with souvenirs phenomena including: perception and authenticity, craft production, cultural property rights, geographical representation, gift‐giving practices, wholesale souvenir and gift distributor networks, locally made products and outsourced merchandise, and online retailing. Souvenirs literature has moved forward from asking the importance of souvenirs to realizing the benefits souvenir consumption can provide within a larger tourism destination portfolio.

Explanation: