Understanding consumer profiles of wine tourists in the Mid-Atlantic region

Purpose This study aims to emerge US wine regions remain underdeveloped, particularly with respect to whether the drivers of visitation intention differ across states. Wine tourism in emerging US regions contribute positively to the bottom line of wine businesses and state economies, in terms of wages and jobs, state and local taxes and revenue from related goods and services (e.g. hospitality and transportation). With businesses and communities relying on proceeds from tasting room visits and sales generated by adjacent industries, defining profiles of tasting room visitors and ways to motivate their return can serve as the basis for more personalized marketing strategies designed to encourage repeat visits. Design/methodology/approach To fill this gap, the authors designed and administered an online survey, of which 953 respondents who resided in three Mid-Atlantic states (New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania), consumed and purchased wine within the previous three months and provided information on their sociodemographic status, wine consumption and purchasing behaviors and history of visiting winery tasting rooms. The study used an exhaustive chi-square automatic interaction detection (ECHAID) decision tree model to identify segments of wine-tasting room visitors. Findings Results from the ECHAID model suggest that the predictive structure of visitation likelihood varies across New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York, revealing distinct actionable segments for wineries in each state. Each state yields distinct actionable segments, seven in New Jersey, five in New York and six in Pennsylvania, drawn from a larger set of terminal nodes. Originality/value The comparative design allows us to examine whether the structure of predictors differs across states rather than assuming a uniform segmentation pattern. The study emphasizes the importance of understanding consumer behavior to develop effective marketing strategies to shape the future of wine tourism in the Mid-Atlantic region.