by Patrick Rahming

Let me tell you a story.

A group of students at a university were asked to share with the class examples of the ways wealth was created within their country’s economy.

The English student explained that in his town, iron ore was mined by a company in which many of the people of the town had shares, as it was publicly traded, and received dividends as the ore was sold to the steel mills in the area. Much of the local business infrastructure was therefore designed to encourage increases in the amount of ore mined as well as the price at which it could be sold. Many of the citizens had become wealthy.

The Chinese student pointed out that his country traded in manufactured goods, with the State as the primary partner, so that semi-private manufacturers benefit from the State’s global reach, as well as their control of labour costs. Many Chinese businessmen had gotten wealthy within that system.

Finally the Bahamian student rose proudly to say that his country was the number one tourist destination in the Caribbean. Wealth, he said, was created as the large numbers of visitors came and went. Then he sat down.

The teacher asked him, “I assume the money spent by the visitors is what creates the local wealth?”

“Well, no.” said the student, rising again uncomfortably, “Actually, the hotels belong to hotel companies, who are foreign. And the airlines and cruise ships are also foreign-owned. I guess the real benefit of the activity are the jobs created. But as for getting wealthy, I admit that is rare.”

“So how does a Tourist Destination like yours build wealth?”

The Bahamian student’s voice broke as he said, “I don’t know”, and sat down again.

This discussion is about the requirements for an economy that gains its income from the movement of tourists. It is therefore about the requirements for building wealth while creating a viable Tourist Destination.

To begin, we must agree that wealth is created by satisfying a simple business formula. That is, since every profitable business gains income by providing a customer with a product for profit, we must agree who is the customer, what is the product, and how do we bring them together for profit?

Let us first agree that the Customer is a Visitor In Search of a Place-Specific Experience.

Then let us agree that the Product must be Place-Specific Experiences. However, we should further agree that those experiences are created by the Local Community, as it shares experiences of their Place, History, Mythology and Lifestyle.

Finally, the transaction, the point at which the Product is passed to the Customer for profit, is called an Attraction.

These are the fundamental elements for the creation of business in a Tourist Destination. But while there may be little or no disagreement on this statement, there is precious little agreement on their application to the Bahamian economy today. And that is because, as a community, the Bahamas has become so committed to the importance of the services needed to support our experiences, that the services have replaced the various experiences themselves. Let me repeat that. We have, for too many years now, replaced providing experiences of our place, history, mythology and lifestyle with a concern for the quality of our brand-name hotels, the cost of transportation and the hospitality that would normally support the experiences. In other words, we have removed the meat, and now call the lettuce the sandwich.

But perhaps you think I digress a little.

So for the purpose of moving forward, we should agree that the definition of a Tourist Destination is a place that provides the opportunity for Visitors in Search of a Place-Specific Experience to have access to the Place, History, Mythology and Lifestyle of the local community, for a price. The economy of a Tourist Destination, then, is driven by the extent to which these unique, place-specific experiences are made available to visitors. And since we have agreed that the points of interaction are called attractions, it follows that the most important element in the success of the Tourist Destination is its stock of attractions.

But what exactly is an attraction?

In the simplest terms, an attraction is something that focuses interest. In business terms it is the point at which an experience is made available to an interested party for a price.

So a toy shop is an attraction to a child. Or to his parent at Christmas. A fashion show is an attraction to most of the women I know. A bar, filled with television screens tuned to the championship basketball game is an attraction to a sports fan. And the making of local craft is an attraction to a curious visitor.

In a Tourist Destination, however, the focus must be the provision of attractions that interest tourists.

How, then does a community begin this process? How does one begin to stock the destination’s “shop” with viable tourist attractions?

The first thing one must do is take inventory. What experiences are there that can be made available to visitors for a price? What does one have that is salable? There are four headings under which this question can be answered:

First, there are experiences of Place, which include unique habitats, like towns and settlements; geographic formations, like blue holes, beaches and lakes; there are sensitive environments, like wetlands; and there are natural habitats, like bush filled with flamingoes, wild hogs or crabs.

Then there are experiences of local history, which usually includes both built monuments, like forts and other historic structures, and events and places that celebrate important moments  and personalities for the local community.

Then there is always unique mythology, usually celebrated in religious or spiritual ceremonies, and in the myths and legends shared in the community’s drama, literature and story-telling.

Finally, there is the community’s peculiar and unique lifestyle, which is shared through access to its food, dress and the ways in which it celebrates the milestones in life, like birth, marriage and death. These are usually recorded in the community’s traditions.

This inventory has two purposes: first it is to record the community’s assets, but then it is to decide which assets it would enjoy sharing. London has chosen to share its History, as has Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and Charlotte-Town Prince Edward Island. Niagara Falls and the Grand Canyon share their physical features. Orlando, Hollywood and Atlantis market their peculiar mythology. And New Orleans, Paris and Las Vegas share the lifestyles of their communities. While each of these Destinations has other aspects of their uniqueness to share, they have all understood that the success of their business demands a primary offering, one that drives the branding of their Destination.

Having made the selection of the stock of attractions and the driving experiences, each of these Destinations has demonstrated their commitment to that choice by the kinds of attractions that dominate their marketing. London celebrates and gives access to historic buildings, traditional ceremonies and places that celebrate famous Englishmen. The spectacles of Niagara Falls and the Grand Canyon are supported by resorts and tours. Orlando, the City of the Mouse, has encouraged the development of fantasy parks. And Bourbon Street shares blues, jazz and cajun food in its most exciting night clubs and restaurants.

The point here is that to develop a strong Tourist Destination, one must first walk through the warehouse of the destination’s place, history, mythology and lifestyle and choose the offerings around which to build its stock of attractions.

Perhaps a quick word about the various kinds of attractions the community might create.

The Tour is the most common form of attraction, and it gives access to the community’s offerings of place, either man-made or natural. It is the genesis of the word “Tour-ist”.

The Retail Attraction provides access to the community’s creative output as well as its natural wealth. The most common forms of Retail Attractions are the Craft Market, the Farmer’s Market, specialty shops and roadside vendors. Unique shopping environments (like the International Bazaar was in the 1960’s) and Festival Marketplaces have also proven very successful as attractions.

Event attractions are particularly attractive for their ability to generate large audiences in a short period of time. The City of Miami, for example, uses the games of the Miami Heat and the Miami Dolphins to bring in tourists, even from the Bahamas.

The Resort Attraction gives access to some other attraction. In fact, the real meaning of the word “Resort” is “an attraction with accommodations”. A fishing resort is a great place to fish first, then it has accommodations. Similarly, a beach resort must give access to the beach. Resort Attractions, unfortunately, are the most misunderstood of all attraction types.

Finally, there are Virtual Attractions. A book that shares the history of a community is a virtual attraction. A movie or video that shares the peculiar traditions of a place is a virtual attraction. Generally, these are consumed away from the destination, but have a powerful impact on the branding of the destination.

The Customer for a Tourist Destination is a Visitor in Search of a Place-Specific Experience. The Product is the unique, place-based experiences that give access to the Place, History, Mythology and Lifestyle of the local community. The cash register, where the Product is sold to the Customer, is the stock of Tours, Retail, Event, Resort and Virtual Attractions created and maintained by the local community. This is what it takes to succeed as a Tourist Destination. These are the basic elements needed for building wealth by the local community.

Those opportunities exist in one of three primary areas: there is providing the infrastructure for hosting visitors (i.e. providing accommodations, transportation or hospitality services), providing support for the operation of the attractions ( i.e. providing utility services, supplies, outsourced services) or the operation of the attractions themselves. Educating the community about the opportunities for building wealth is a prime responsibility of the community’s leadership; and the key to the sustainability of a Tourist Destination.

One final word. One of the biggest mistakes made by tourist destinations is ignoring the life span of attractions. When the International Bazaar was built, it was indeed unique, and was a strong Retail Attraction. Twenty years later, by which time most malls in the world were themed, it was no longer viable as an attraction. Similarly, El Casino was built just after Cuba’s casinos had been closed by the revolution, with no other public casinos in the region. It was successful as a lifestyle attraction until the explosion of casinos in Florida and elsewhere in the Bahamas. Thirty years after opening, even free junkets were no longer salable. All attractions are subject to obsolescence, although the terms may vary widely, and the need for constant renewal of the stock of attractions is critical to the success of a Tourist Destination.

“Renew or Die” is a popular slogan among attractions designers and managers.

Anybody want to build a Tourist Destination?