ABSTRACT
Shopping is the core of consumption and retailing the emblem of a consumer society (Timothy 2005). The primary goal of retailing is to encourage people to shop and purchase merchandise and services. As shopping is one of the oldest and most common activities associated with travel, it might be expected that the relationship between tourism, retailing and shopping should be of concern to tourism academics. Perhaps surprisingly, and however obvious the relationship would appear, an analysis of shopping has not been at the forefront of tourism research (Coles 2004b). While the existing tourism academic interest may be limited, shopping is becoming increasingly important to tourism both in terms of the actual consumption of goods purchased and as a source of enjoyment and satisfaction. Shopping stimulated by visitors outside of the local region has an important economic impact on host communities as well as being a key attraction for visitors (Asgary, et al. 1997; Jackson 1996).
