Heritage attractions, competitive pressures and adaptation: the case of the British seaside pier

ABSTRACT

Heritage visitor attractions operate in a dynamic environment requiring them to respond to changing circumstances which they cannot control. This paper focuses on adaptation strategies adopted by one type of heritage resource: the seaside pier in the UK. As part of the heritage of mass tourism itself, piers were created in a specific context and, as that context has changed, they have needed to adapt to remain viable as attractions. A combination of observational field visits to all UK piers and in-depth interviews with selected pier owners was used to examine strategies of adaptation. Three pier categories were identified, characterised by different adaptation strategies and experiences offered to visitors. The Family Entertainment Pier has adopted a strategy of consolidation, offering a traditional product with some diversification to suit contemporary consumer tastes. The Twenty-first Century Innovator Pier has followed a strategy of differentiation, focussed on contemporary entertainments and catering. The Heritage Pier has differentiated by offering a nostalgic and uncommercialised experience of the traditional seaside holiday. These strategies enable individual piers to remain competitive as attractions but some have more robust business models and are in a stronger financial position to deal with ongoing and future challenges.

KEYWORDS:

• Seaside piers
• adaptation strategies
• competition
• visitor experience
• coastal tourism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by the Coastal Revival Fund (UK Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government).

Notes on contributors

Anya Chapman

Anya Chapman is Senior Lecturer in Tourism Management at Bournemouth University Business School, UK. Her research interests focus on mature coastal tourism destinations, specifically seaside resorts within the UK, and the traditional tourist attractions within these destinations, such as funfairs, amusement arcades, and seaside piers. Anya is an executive committee member of the National Piers Society.

Duncan Light

Duncan Light is Senior Lecturer in Tourism in Bournemouth University Business School, UK. He has long-standing research interests in heritage tourism and the relationships between tourism, heritage and (national) identities. He is the author of The Dracula Dilemma: Tourism, Identity and the State in Romania (Ashgate, 2012).

Steven Richards

Steven Richards is Senior Lecturer in Tourism Management at the Bournemouth University Business School. His research interests lie in visitor attraction management and the importance of novelty and variety in destination attractiveness. He has over ten years consultancy experience which has encompassed development projects, policy reviews and evaluations, market appraisals, environmental impact assessments, and social and economic assessments.