Description
The aim of this study is to explore the attractiveness of tourist night markets by looking at the
dual nature of retail service and tourism from a supply-side perspective
International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research
The attractiveness of tourist night markets in Taiwan – a supply-side view
Yi-Fei Chuang Shiuh-Nan Hwang J ehn-Yih Wong Chun-Der Chen
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To cite this document:
Yi-Fei Chuang Shiuh-Nan Hwang J ehn-Yih Wong Chun-Der Chen , (2014),"The attractiveness of tourist night markets in
Taiwan – a supply-side view", International J ournal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research, Vol. 8 Iss 3 pp. 333 - 344
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The attractiveness of tourist night
markets in Taiwan – a supply-side view
Yi-Fei Chuang, Shiuh-Nan Hwang, Jehn-Yih Wong and Chun-Der Chen
Yi-Fei Chuang is an
Associate Professor,
Shiuh-Nan Hwang is a
Professor, Jehn-Yih Wong
is a Professor,
Chun-Der Chen is an
Assistant Professor and
all are based at
Department of Business
Administration, Ming
Chuan University, Taipei
City, Taiwan, Republic of
China.
Abstract
Purpose – The aimof this study is to explore the attractiveness of tourist night markets by looking at the
dual nature of retail service and tourism from a supply-side perspective.
Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted ?eld observations to understand the offerings
at night markets and used content analysis to explore the attributes of vendors who operate there.
Findings – The research reveals that the attractiveness of night markets derives from the diversity of
service contents and local food, affordable consumption (the lowest unit prices, with products under
US$3.3 comprising approximately 70 per cent of those offered), temple festivals and the various service
attributes of vendors. These night market features generate physical perceptions and personnel
perceptions among tourists. Vendor service attributes include performance, empathy, responsiveness
and courtesy. Unique and interesting performances comprise a special attribute of night markets that
differ from other service industries.
Practical implications – The results provide information on how tourism of?cials can promote night
markets as tourist destinations and what kinds of vendor service attributes please tourists the most.
Originality/value – This study expands on the literature that discusses perceptual attributes to tourist
street markets by exploring the service contents of these markets and by identifying the service
attributes of vendors.
Keywords Attractiveness of tourism destinations, Service attribute, Service content, Street vendor,
Tourist night market, Retail service
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Visiting street markets is a popular sightseeing and leisure activity for foreign tourists and
local people (Kikuchi and Ryan, 2007; Hseih and Chang, 2006). Street vending has
become a tourism resource that re?ects the local culture and customs of the inhabitants in
many Asian countries (Henderson et al., 2012; Lee et al., 2008; Hseih and Chang, 2006).
Street markets are venues that promote city tourism and are often marketed as tourist
attractions by governments and tourism companies (Kikuchi and Ryan, 2007; Henderson et
al., 2012; Taiwan Tourism Bureau, 2012; Timothy and Wall, 1997).
Night markets are a type of street market that exist in many Asian nations, being de?ned as
a night-time business venue in which various vendors provide general merchandise,
including locally produced and imported goods, and services to consumers to satisfy their
needs for shopping, eating and/or entertainment (Zhou, 2002; Chang and Hseih, 2006). In
Taiwan, night markets are vital eating and shopping destinations and provide set places for
experiencing local cultures (Chang and Hsieh, 2006; Lee et al., 2008). Night markets
possess the nature of both retail service and tourism. Thus, the appeal of night markets as
tourist attractions is an interesting dimension to explore in greater detail.
Received 13 September 2013
Revised 20 December 2013
Accepted 7 February 2014
The author thanks the
anonymous reviewers for their
helpful suggestions and
comments. This research was
?nancially supported by the
National Science Foundation
in Taiwan (NSC 100-2632-H-
130-002-MY3).
DOI 10.1108/IJCTHR-09-2013-0067 VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014, pp. 333-344, © Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1750-6182 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH PAGE 333
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Previous studies concerning aggregative retail service have focused on consumer
behavior in shopping malls or department stores. Konishi (2005), for example, noted that a
high centralization or agglomeration of stores attracts customers with uncertain
preferences and low price expectations. Additionally, a heterogeneous collection of stores
offers a diversity of experiences and a lively atmosphere, which are crucial to attracting
consumers (Teller and Reutterer, 2008). The role of the street vendor in tourism has also
been discussed, but the literature has focused more on either the tourist experience or the
interplay between the social and spatial aspects within tourism developments (Henderson
et al., 2012; Steel, 2012; Timothy and Wall, 1997). Few studies have examined the services
offered by vendors in night markets.
This paper asks two questions:
1. What are the service contents of night markets?
2. What are the key service attributes of vendors in night markets?
We use a qualitative research method in this study to answer these questions.
2. Literature review
2.1 Perceptual attributes of tourist destination
Leiper (1990) proposed tourist attraction systems to explain the behavior of the tourist
destination choice. Tourist attraction systems reveal that location, scenery, unique cultural
dimensions and people who reside and work there are the main features and attributes of
a destination that in?uence a tourist’s decision to visit a speci?c destination (Leiper, 1990;
Richards, 2002). The attractive attributes of a destination, speci?cally those that address
pull factors located on the push–pull framework, are the reasons that tourists choose one
destination over another (Klenosky, 2002).
Regarding the evaluation of a destination’s attractiveness, research from the supply-side
perspective has addressed the resources or attributes of a destination that attracts visitors
(Chen et al., 2009; Smith and Deppa, 2010). A destination’s core resources and attributes,
such as its infrastructures, services and natural and cultural amenities, constitute its lure
(Dwyer et al., 2004; Neves, 2012).
Prior studies have identi?ed the domains of attractiveness for a speci?c destination by
using either qualitative or quantitative research methods. For example, Kim et al. (2000), in
their study of the Lost City at Sun City, South Africa, determined that the most attractive
destination domains are:
“entertainment”;
“infrastructure”;
“the physical environment”; and
“high-pro?le entertainment opportunities”.
Others have studied attributes related to overseas destinations that include ?ve pull items:
1. “historical/cultural”;
2. “sports/activity”;
3. “safety/upscale”;
4. “natural/outdoor”; and
5. “expensive/budget” items (Oh et al., 1995).
For Japanese senior travelers visiting Thailand, the four pull factors are:
1. “cultural and historical attractions”;
2. “travel arrangements and facilities”;
PAGE 334 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014
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3. “shopping and leisure activities”; and
4. “safety and cleanliness” (Sangpikul, 2008).
The aforementioned researchers examined tourist perceptions of tourist attractions to
evaluate the attractiveness of a destination. Hsieh and Chang (2006) suggested that the
characteristics of tourist night markets include the diversity of products and services,
reasonable product prices and bargaining. At night markets, tourists are able to enjoy the
local cuisine, participate in recreational activities, shop, visit local traditional buildings and
experience local lifestyles and cultures. Lee et al. (2008) emphasized that the perceived
image of night markets after being visited by tourists relates to delicious local cuisine, a
lively atmosphere and low prices.
As night markets are also popular tourist attractions, in this study, we speci?cally examine
tourist perceptions of night markets to measure the attractiveness of night markets. The
attractiveness domains examined in this study are resources and destination attributes,
including location, service contents and vendor attributes.
2.2 Perceptual service attributes
Studies have indicated that service quality or customer services are aspects
considered by tourists when assessing a destination image (Echtner and Ritchie, 1993;
Lee et al., 2008). Clearly, street vendors are a vital element of night markets, and the
quality of service vendors in?uences tourists’ images of and their willingness to visit a
night market. Churchill (1979) stated that the development of a quality construct
measurement must begin with qualitative research to de?ne the scope and to identify
attributes. Subsequently, numerous studies developing service quality scales ?rst
identi?ed perceptual attributes and then categorized the dimensions (Dabholkar et al.,
1996; Parasuraman et al., 1988; 2005). Therefore, based on the process of service
quality measurement, this study identi?es perceptual attributes of night markets by a
qualitative research method.
Parasuraman et al. (1988) proposed the ?ve widely known general service industry service
attributes (SERVQUAL): tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy.
These attributes emphasize “pure” service settings because they focus on the perceptual
attributes of the interaction process between the personnel providing the service and the
consumers. However, previous studies have considered these attributes to be not
completely suitable for service quality evaluations of mixed merchandise/facilities and
services, such as retail stores, food services and upscale restaurants (Dabholkar et al.,
1996; Raajpoot, 2002; Ryu and Jang, 2008). The service attributes of these types of
industries emphasize not only the attributes of the interactions between people but also
more highly emphasize facility and environment attributes, such as the facility’s esthetic,
ambience, lighting, service products, layout, social factors and design factors (Raajpoot,
2002; Ryu and Jang, 2008).
When engaging in travel activities, tourists often require professional services at various
destinations, such as those provided by group tour guides and national park personnel
who provide information and help. Thus, the SERVQUAL scale proposed by Parasuraman
et al. (1988) is typically used when discussing the service quality of tourism service
personnel. For example, Chen et al. (2006) used the SERVQUAL scale in their discussion
on tourist assessments of satisfaction over national park introduction information and
services. The results of their study indicate that tourists have greater satisfaction regarding
introduction abilities, which include aspects such as reliability, responsiveness and
assurance.
One of the objectives of this study is to focus on the performance of street vending services
in night markets. We emphasize on the interaction quality between tourists and vendors.
Based on previous studies (Parasuraman et al., 1985), we de?ne the vending service
attribute as the perceptual service attributes of tourists when vendors provide services.
VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH PAGE 335
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3. Research methods
The purpose of this study is to investigate the facilitating reasons of visiting night markets
from the supply-side perspective with core resources and attributes. To accomplish such
a goal, we select Taipei’s Shilin Night Market as a case study because it is among the top
destinations most foreign tourists visit when coming to Taiwan (Taiwan Tourism Bureau,
2012). First, this study characterizes the core resources of night markets through ?eld
observation to explore the practiced resources. We recruited and trained ten university
student observers and conducted on-site observation of Shilin Night Market service
providers between October 2011 and December 2011. The data obtained and recorded
through observations include their locations, the categories of stores and the ranges of
product prices. We acquire 744 usable data of vendors.
Second, we conducted in-depth interviews with vendors and tourists to understand their
opinions and perceptions of service attributes when a vendor transmits a service. This
study selects interviewees by tour leaders’ recommendations, and Table I shows the
pro?les of each interviewee. The tourists interviewed are from various countries: Japan,
South Korea, China, Vietnam, the UK, the USA and some from Taiwan. All vendors
interviewed had over ten years of night market business operations. Therefore, the
interviewees in this study are generally suitable for this research topic. The main questions
we posed when interviewing service providers include the following:
What attitude or technique do you apply when rendering a service to customers?
In your opinion, what are the key attributes of service for night markets?
The main questions during interviews with the tourists include the following:
When interacting with night market vendors, what do you perceive to be the key
attributes of service?
After spending time at the night market, what are your perceptions regarding its
attraction?
These questions for interviews are modi?ed from Parasuraman et al. (1985).
Table I Pro?les of interviewees
Subjects Pro?le
Tourists Female, 26 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Female, 30 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Female, 50 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Female, 44 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Male, 53 years old, white-collar, Taiwanese
Female, 25 years old, student, Vietnamese
Female, 26 years old, teacher, American
Male, 39 years old, teacher, British
Male, 43 years old, white collar worker, Japanese
Female, 32 years old, of?ce lady, South Korean
Female, 37 years old, housewife, Chinese
Male, 22 years old, student, Macao, Chinese
Street vendors Male, providing stir-fried food for 50 years
Male, providing braised food for 22 years
Male, providing papaya milk for 47years
Female, providing cold sweetmeats for 20 years
Female, providing icy foods for 40 years
Female, providing sausage foods for 40 years
Male, providing fried chicken for 20 years
Female, providing hot sweetmeats for 10 years
Male, providing ?sh-ball foods for 10 years
Male, providing skateboarding articles for 12 years
PAGE 336 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014
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This study uses content analysis suggested by Charley (1993) to acquire the service
attribute dimensions of night markets. Interviews were recorded and converted into text.
The ?rst step in data analysis is to decide the level of analysis. We decided to code for a
single word, such as “hawking”, and for phrases such as “not being overly persistent or
keeping a close watch on customers”. According to the de?nitions of service attributes, two
judges independently coded the text into 54 analysis units. Subsequently, through
collective discussions and a consensus between the researchers and judges, we extracted
a total of 40 analysis units from the original 54 units. Finally, judges independently sorted
the 40 analysis units into categories. We obtain an inter-judge reliability value of 0.81 and
an intra-judge reliability value of 0.88, demonstrating a considerable high reliability for the
collection of the service attribute dimensions.
4. Results
In this study, we evaluate vendors operating at Shilin Night Market by using data collected
from 744 vendors. This data include information on their geographical location, type of
products sold and the lowest/highest prices charged on products. We use the SPSS
software to characterize the appearance of night markets, taking the descriptive statistics
of the observation data and information gathered from our interviews.
4.1 Categories of services
Table II shows the service-type distribution of Shilin Night Market. The results indicate that
food- and non-food-related vendors account for 43 and 57 per cent, respectively. The
products/services offered include food, beverages, apparel, shoes, bags, sundries,
electronic products, games and other products, which satisfy tourist needs and demands,
such as eating, drinking, clothing, using, playing and entertainment.
Regarding food-related products, traditional Taiwanese snacks comprise the highest
percentage, showcasing the main night market characteristic of the local food culture. The
next most popular service is beverages, such as tea, bean curd pudding and iced
beverages. Foreign foods and creative cuisine also comprise a considerable percentage.
Regarding non-food-related products, night markets primarily provide apparel and
footwear to satisfy buyers’ demands. Games for entertainment such as balloon shooting,
baseball grids, pinball machines and ?shing also make up a considerable percentage.
Based on the service content offered at Shilin Night Market, we conclude that night markets
encompass diverse services and can satisfy the demands of tourists in all age groups.
Table II Categories of services and type of operator in the Shilin Night Market
Categories of services Store Street vendor Total (%)
Food-related
Beverages 20 34 54 7.3 42.9
Traditional Taiwanese snacks 91 96 187 25.1
Foreign food 21 13 34 4.6
Creative cuisine 8 8 16 2.2
Other food 21 7 28 3.8
Non-food-related
Apparel 157 11 168 22.6 57.1
Shoes 29 4 33 4.4
Bags 8 4 12 1.6
Accessory 32 21 53 7.1
Sundries 28 4 32 4.3
Electronic products 4 1 5 0.7
Games 5 32 37 5.0
Others 76 9 85 11.4
Total 500 244 744 100 100
VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH PAGE 337
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Food courts are a part of the important advertising image used by the Taiwan Government
to promote tourism in the country. This is also the origin of the brand name “Shilin Night
Market”. According to vendors interviewed, they stated that Shilin Night Market developed
from an early market in Shilin, where fresh groceries were offered in the morning and snack
vendors sold local Taiwanese snacks in the evening. During its growth, unique and
well-known products were developed and offered at the night market, such as Shilin
sausages, small buns wrapped in large buns and stir-fried squids, all of which are now
associated with and have become symbols for Shilin Night Market.
Through our onsite observations and interviews conducted in this study, we ?nd that Shilin
Night Market has long queues and innovative products. However, the development of night
markets as a form of business originated from the gathering force of traditional products.
This development has been sustained by and within the attractiveness of innovative
products, which are tested by market forces. In other words, products that are accepted by
tourists tend to survive and become tradition, while products and services that do not
appeal to tourists/locals are replaced with new products, which are tested once again to
see whether they can be adapted into the market as brands. Therefore, the vitality of night
markets is demonstrated in its interweaving between tradition and innovation.
4.2 Prices
Excluding information on vendors who refused to be interviewed and price information that
could not be assessed, we obtain 479 and 408 sample data for the lowest and highest unit
prices for service at Shilin Night Market, respectively, as shown in Table III. Regarding the
lowest unit prices, products priced at less than US$3.3 comprise approximately 70 per cent
of that on offer, of which 50 per cent of these products have a lowest unit price of less than
US$1.6. Even among the products with the highest unit prices, 47 per cent of them are still
below USA$3.3.
We observe that the lowest unit prices for food items are primarily less than US$1.6, and the
highest unit prices are less than US$3.3, indicating that tourists and locals can enjoy good
food at night markets at a cost of approximately US$3.3 or less. The lowest unit price range
for the majority of apparel is US$1.61 to US$10, and both the lowest and highest unit prices
for games are less than US$3.3. Therefore, we conclude that tourists and locals can visit
and consume in night markets for a cost of only US$3.3. In general, the service prices of
night markets offer the affordable consumption of goods and services.
4.3 Geographic information
The geographical location domain of Shilin Night Market constitutes the Shilin shopping
district and food court (Figure 1). Compared to other tourist night market destinations in
Table III The lowest/highest prices for services at the Shilin Night Market
Unit price Less than US$1.6 US$ 1.61-3.3 US$ 3.31-10 US$ 10.1-20 More than US$ 20 Total
Lowest price
Food-related 205 48 6 0 0 259
Costumes and accessories 6 40 54 21 25 145
Articles for daily use 8 3 3 0 2 16
Games 16 0 0 0 0 16
Others 9 7 14 7 5 42
Total 244 98 77 28 32 479
Highest price
Food-related 96 79 37 13 4 229
Costumes and accessories 1 1 3 19 91 115
Articles for daily use 0 0 2 2 11 15
Games 13 1 0 0 0 14
Others 0 3 4 1 27 35
Total 110 84 46 35 133 408
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Taipei City, this famous one is considerably larger and well laid out. Because of the vast
area surrounding Shilin Night Market, many businesses can be accommodated to provide
an extensive range of products to tourists. In addition, the Shilin area is served by the
metropolitan area’s MRT train system and many bus lines and shuttles, which increase the
accessibility of this location.
Based on the current geographical distribution of service types, we can portray the
development path of Shilin Night Market. In other words, the temple there is the center
around which an agglomeration of food businesses is situated. Expanding outward,
apparel and game and entertainment vendors surround the food businesses, forming a
comprehensive market where diverse products and services are provided that,
simultaneously, offer various functions for tourists and local entertainment.
Figure 1 Geographic agglomeration of vendors in the Shilin Night Market
VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH PAGE 339
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4.4 Service attributes
Relying on our content analysis methods, we gather together four service attributes
regarding night market service vendors. We present the classi?cations and discussions of
these attributes below.
4.4.1 Performance. At a night market, service workers display various abilities and
techniques to attract visitors to their stalls, such as providing entertaining events when
offering their services. These performing attributes include:
having a sense of humor;
promoting the products by popular or famous celebrities/personalities;
interacting with visitors through chit-chats and teasing;
hawking;
using live performances and attractive attire to draw in the crowd; and
allowing visitors to take photos.
4.4.2 Empathy. Service staffs usually understand tourists’ demands. These kinds of
attributes include:
understanding tourists’ needs;
providing individual or individualized attention to customers;
being empathetic to customers;
being un-overly persistent or keeping a close watch on tourists’ window-shopping;
being thoughtful and tolerant to customers’ concerns;
providing price/volume discounts;
making jokes and pleasantries;
conducting chats with customers;
mentioning the opening/closing hours of business; and
allowing customers to sample/test certain products before purchasing.
4.4.3 Responsiveness. Service vendors/staff are usually prepared to provide services to
tourists all the time. These service attributes include:
possessing and using foreign language skills, using hand/sign language or gestures;
using prior experience abilities;
remembering clients’ food orders;
giving prompt and ef?cient services/deliveries;
coordinating and providing suggestions or recommendations to clients when required;
distributing table/order tags to remind clients of their seating arrangements;
apologizing whenever any errors occur; and
offering to compensate for any service mistakes.
4.4.4 Courtesy. Pertaining to the courtesy attribute, the service workers must handle and
receive customers with respect, through polite responses to customers’ needs, concerns
and requirements by being gentle, friendly, caring and generally behaving professionally
and portraying good attitudes and mannerisms. The courtesy attribute must include
behaviors such as af?nity and patience, warm pleasant smiles, joyful and passionate
attitudes, positive and enthusiastic personalities and respectful and friendly expressions,
among others.
PAGE 340 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014
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5. Discussions and implications
This study examines the service contents of night markets through a ?eld observation to
describe the nature of such markets. We interviewed service vendors and tourists in-depth
to explore the service attributes of vendors at night markets. The research results ?nd that
the attractiveness of night markets comes from a diversity of service contents and local
food and affordable consumption, as well as the service attributes of vendors, who give
tourists physical perceptions and personnel perceptions as noted in Table IV. Night
markets provide various foods, beverages, apparel, games and other products to satisfy
consumer demand and display a great diversity in the services provided. Food products
actually comprise approximately 50 per cent of the services provided at Shilin Night
Market. This ?nding supports that of previous studies, which have considered food and
tourism to be inseparably related (Hall and Mitchell, 2000; Henderson et al., 2012).
Traditional Taiwanese-style snacks comprise the largest percentage of food services
offered at night markets, showcasing the night market characteristic of the local food
culture and enabling tourists to experience the local lifestyle. A tourist we interviewed had
this to say: “I wanted to see what local people eat, and maybe have a taste [. . .] ” (Tourist
J). Data from our ?eld observations show that foreign foods and creative cuisines also
account for a considerable percentage of the services, corresponding to the results from
the experiences of tourists concerning the diverse foods offered at night markets (Lee et al.,
2008). Our study also ?nds that the prices at night markets display an affordable
consumption phenomenon, which corresponds to the ?ndings of previous studies on the
experiences of tourists in regard to low prices in night markets and hawker centers (Lee et
al., 2008; Henderson et al., 2012). Therefore, traditional snacks, creative cuisine and
affordable consumption are important factors for attracting tourists/local visitors to night
markets. Local foods and affordable consumption can hence be emphasized for promoting
city tourism.
There is a certain geographical aggregation of the provided services at night markets.
Food courts and beverage vendors are located around a temple (which is also the center
of the night market), and apparel and game stalls congregate at the border of the night
markets. This geographical distribution of vendors re?ects the development trace of Shilin
Night Market, which grew out from periodic temple festivals and then attracted an
agglomeration of snack and other vendors to provide various kinds of services. Tourists are
able to not only acquire shopping enjoyment but also experience the meaning of the local
temple through a visit to Shilin Night Market. This implies that a night market alongside a
temple may be more popular than other night markets without a nearby temple, thereby
luring more tourists. Accordingly, it is recommended that the local government can
integrate temple festivals and local foods into an attractive visitor plan to promote the night
market as a tourism destination.
Table IV The offerings of Shilin NM and tourists’ perceived attraction
Offerings of shilin NM Tourists’ perceived attraction
Service contents Physical perception
All kinds of merchandise and services Delicious food
Local foods and creative cuisine Diversi?cation/multiplicity
Inexpensive and affordable prices Novelty
Larger market area Accessibility
Location advantages Fame and uniqueness
Near city center Local culture
Near a temple Affordability
Service attributes Personnel perception
Performing Entertaining
Empathy Courtesy
Courtesy
Responsive
VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH PAGE 341
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A night market comprises various street vendors and retail stores that provide diverse
services, which further enhance the attractiveness of the market in regard to its size. As
stated by tourist “B” we interviewed: “[. . .] Shilin Night Market is large, and many items can
be purchased there [. . .]”. Shilin Night Market also possesses several development
advantages geographically. Its location, for example, can be treated as a traf?c hub (it has
its own MRT train station), and it is close to a local religious center, thereby bringing
accessibility to it as a destination. In addition, many different levels of schools are located
around Shilin Night Market and its environs. As a result, the market attracts huge crowds
that congregate around the area compared to other business districts. As indicated by
another tourist we interviewed: “[. . .] Shilin Night Market is crowded and lively [. . .]”
(Tourist L).
The results of this study agree with the ?ndings of previous studies, which have indicated
that the night market atmosphere leaves a vivid impression on visitors (Lee et al., 2008). Our
study further agrees with previous results in the literature – that is, a mixture of a variety of
stores and atmospheres is an important factor that in?uences the desire of visitors to seek
out these destinations (Teller and Reutterer, 2008). In other words, the scale and mixture of
a night market affect the intentions of tourists. Therefore, this study concludes that a night
market with a large market area and which is close to the center of the city can easily attract
large crowds and bring about a vibrant interaction atmosphere between tourists and
visitors. The local government can choose this type of night market for its tourism
promotions.
Over the decades, Shilin Night Market has emerged as a popular destination in Taipei
where products are created and displayed for use and consumption. These products have,
at times, become symbolic of Shilin Night Market. Many innovative products can be found
there that oftentimes draw huge crowds. Aside from providing traditional/local foods as its
main products/branding, continual innovative styles of products and services have become
the necessary trend at Shilin Night Market to satisfy the needs and expectations of tourists
and locals wishing to experience new trends and gather new information at the market. This
inference can explain the ?nding that “novelty-seeking, exercising and experiencing local
culture and customs are the major factors that motivate tourists to shop in the tourist night
market” (Hsieh and Chang, 2006, p. 138). Based on this discussion, we propose a
proposition that the development of the categories of services at night markets is based on
traditional snacks, as well as a continual innovation of products to attract tourists. In other
words, the vitality of night markets demonstrates their interwoven nature between tradition
and innovation to meet the needs of both tourists and local visitors. As a result, a night
market not only possesses traditional unique foods but also creates innovation products/
services that are the most critical factors for sustainable development.
The service attributes displayed during the process of interaction between night market
service providers and tourists/locals include: performing, empathy, responsiveness and
courtesy, among others. Comparing to the service providers of other service industries
(Parasuraman et al., 1988), service vendors at night markets also possess responsiveness
and empathy when they interact with customers, with courtesy especially emphasized. This
may be related to the nature of hospitality ingrained in the Taiwanese. Tourists are “guests”
and so must be “treated with propriety”. As stated by vendor “A” we interviewed: “There is
more friendliness in a night market. We see customers as friends, we treat them with great
enthusiasm [. . .] ” In addition, performing is a special attribute at night markets that differs
from other service industries. Many vendors gather at night markets and present some
unique hawking methods to sell their products – the use of a live performance has become
an important technique that vendors use to attract tourists/locals to visit, shop, eat and play
at their vendor booths/stores. Interesting performances by vendors can produce a lively
atmosphere, and this is one of the important reasons for tourists to visit a night market. As
stated by tourist “B” we interviewed: “[. . .] (I come) to see the hawker man [. . .] he even
sprays juice when performing [. . .]”. Hence, vendors should cultivate special hawking
PAGE 342 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014
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techniques and treat visitors with courtesy. These actions will make visitors be deeply
impressed with the vendors in night markets, thereby creating a positive intention for a
revisit.
The results of this exploratory study of night markets, and especially Shilin Night Market,
provide insights to other cities or countries attempting to develop and promote tourism
and/or informal sectors, such as night markets and street vending businesses to create
jobs, attract tourists and revenue and enhance economic growth. Although the service
contents of night markets examined in this study were limited to only Taipei’s Shilin Night
Market, the ?ndings may not present a general structure for all night markets around the
world. In addition, our study has proposed the service attributes related to the interaction
between service providers and tourists/visitors. We suggest that future studies can
quantitatively examine the relationship between service attributes and the attractiveness of
tourism destinations so as to enhance a more thorough understanding of the nature of night
markets.
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Corresponding author
Yi-Fei Chuang can be contacted at: [email protected]
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doc_583849950.pdf
The aim of this study is to explore the attractiveness of tourist night markets by looking at the
dual nature of retail service and tourism from a supply-side perspective
International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research
The attractiveness of tourist night markets in Taiwan – a supply-side view
Yi-Fei Chuang Shiuh-Nan Hwang J ehn-Yih Wong Chun-Der Chen
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Taiwan – a supply-side view", International J ournal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research, Vol. 8 Iss 3 pp. 333 - 344
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The attractiveness of tourist night
markets in Taiwan – a supply-side view
Yi-Fei Chuang, Shiuh-Nan Hwang, Jehn-Yih Wong and Chun-Der Chen
Yi-Fei Chuang is an
Associate Professor,
Shiuh-Nan Hwang is a
Professor, Jehn-Yih Wong
is a Professor,
Chun-Der Chen is an
Assistant Professor and
all are based at
Department of Business
Administration, Ming
Chuan University, Taipei
City, Taiwan, Republic of
China.
Abstract
Purpose – The aimof this study is to explore the attractiveness of tourist night markets by looking at the
dual nature of retail service and tourism from a supply-side perspective.
Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted ?eld observations to understand the offerings
at night markets and used content analysis to explore the attributes of vendors who operate there.
Findings – The research reveals that the attractiveness of night markets derives from the diversity of
service contents and local food, affordable consumption (the lowest unit prices, with products under
US$3.3 comprising approximately 70 per cent of those offered), temple festivals and the various service
attributes of vendors. These night market features generate physical perceptions and personnel
perceptions among tourists. Vendor service attributes include performance, empathy, responsiveness
and courtesy. Unique and interesting performances comprise a special attribute of night markets that
differ from other service industries.
Practical implications – The results provide information on how tourism of?cials can promote night
markets as tourist destinations and what kinds of vendor service attributes please tourists the most.
Originality/value – This study expands on the literature that discusses perceptual attributes to tourist
street markets by exploring the service contents of these markets and by identifying the service
attributes of vendors.
Keywords Attractiveness of tourism destinations, Service attribute, Service content, Street vendor,
Tourist night market, Retail service
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Visiting street markets is a popular sightseeing and leisure activity for foreign tourists and
local people (Kikuchi and Ryan, 2007; Hseih and Chang, 2006). Street vending has
become a tourism resource that re?ects the local culture and customs of the inhabitants in
many Asian countries (Henderson et al., 2012; Lee et al., 2008; Hseih and Chang, 2006).
Street markets are venues that promote city tourism and are often marketed as tourist
attractions by governments and tourism companies (Kikuchi and Ryan, 2007; Henderson et
al., 2012; Taiwan Tourism Bureau, 2012; Timothy and Wall, 1997).
Night markets are a type of street market that exist in many Asian nations, being de?ned as
a night-time business venue in which various vendors provide general merchandise,
including locally produced and imported goods, and services to consumers to satisfy their
needs for shopping, eating and/or entertainment (Zhou, 2002; Chang and Hseih, 2006). In
Taiwan, night markets are vital eating and shopping destinations and provide set places for
experiencing local cultures (Chang and Hsieh, 2006; Lee et al., 2008). Night markets
possess the nature of both retail service and tourism. Thus, the appeal of night markets as
tourist attractions is an interesting dimension to explore in greater detail.
Received 13 September 2013
Revised 20 December 2013
Accepted 7 February 2014
The author thanks the
anonymous reviewers for their
helpful suggestions and
comments. This research was
?nancially supported by the
National Science Foundation
in Taiwan (NSC 100-2632-H-
130-002-MY3).
DOI 10.1108/IJCTHR-09-2013-0067 VOL. 8 NO. 3 2014, pp. 333-344, © Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1750-6182 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH PAGE 333
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Previous studies concerning aggregative retail service have focused on consumer
behavior in shopping malls or department stores. Konishi (2005), for example, noted that a
high centralization or agglomeration of stores attracts customers with uncertain
preferences and low price expectations. Additionally, a heterogeneous collection of stores
offers a diversity of experiences and a lively atmosphere, which are crucial to attracting
consumers (Teller and Reutterer, 2008). The role of the street vendor in tourism has also
been discussed, but the literature has focused more on either the tourist experience or the
interplay between the social and spatial aspects within tourism developments (Henderson
et al., 2012; Steel, 2012; Timothy and Wall, 1997). Few studies have examined the services
offered by vendors in night markets.
This paper asks two questions:
1. What are the service contents of night markets?
2. What are the key service attributes of vendors in night markets?
We use a qualitative research method in this study to answer these questions.
2. Literature review
2.1 Perceptual attributes of tourist destination
Leiper (1990) proposed tourist attraction systems to explain the behavior of the tourist
destination choice. Tourist attraction systems reveal that location, scenery, unique cultural
dimensions and people who reside and work there are the main features and attributes of
a destination that in?uence a tourist’s decision to visit a speci?c destination (Leiper, 1990;
Richards, 2002). The attractive attributes of a destination, speci?cally those that address
pull factors located on the push–pull framework, are the reasons that tourists choose one
destination over another (Klenosky, 2002).
Regarding the evaluation of a destination’s attractiveness, research from the supply-side
perspective has addressed the resources or attributes of a destination that attracts visitors
(Chen et al., 2009; Smith and Deppa, 2010). A destination’s core resources and attributes,
such as its infrastructures, services and natural and cultural amenities, constitute its lure
(Dwyer et al., 2004; Neves, 2012).
Prior studies have identi?ed the domains of attractiveness for a speci?c destination by
using either qualitative or quantitative research methods. For example, Kim et al. (2000), in
their study of the Lost City at Sun City, South Africa, determined that the most attractive
destination domains are:
“entertainment”;
“infrastructure”;
“the physical environment”; and
“high-pro?le entertainment opportunities”.
Others have studied attributes related to overseas destinations that include ?ve pull items:
1. “historical/cultural”;
2. “sports/activity”;
3. “safety/upscale”;
4. “natural/outdoor”; and
5. “expensive/budget” items (Oh et al., 1995).
For Japanese senior travelers visiting Thailand, the four pull factors are:
1. “cultural and historical attractions”;
2. “travel arrangements and facilities”;
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3. “shopping and leisure activities”; and
4. “safety and cleanliness” (Sangpikul, 2008).
The aforementioned researchers examined tourist perceptions of tourist attractions to
evaluate the attractiveness of a destination. Hsieh and Chang (2006) suggested that the
characteristics of tourist night markets include the diversity of products and services,
reasonable product prices and bargaining. At night markets, tourists are able to enjoy the
local cuisine, participate in recreational activities, shop, visit local traditional buildings and
experience local lifestyles and cultures. Lee et al. (2008) emphasized that the perceived
image of night markets after being visited by tourists relates to delicious local cuisine, a
lively atmosphere and low prices.
As night markets are also popular tourist attractions, in this study, we speci?cally examine
tourist perceptions of night markets to measure the attractiveness of night markets. The
attractiveness domains examined in this study are resources and destination attributes,
including location, service contents and vendor attributes.
2.2 Perceptual service attributes
Studies have indicated that service quality or customer services are aspects
considered by tourists when assessing a destination image (Echtner and Ritchie, 1993;
Lee et al., 2008). Clearly, street vendors are a vital element of night markets, and the
quality of service vendors in?uences tourists’ images of and their willingness to visit a
night market. Churchill (1979) stated that the development of a quality construct
measurement must begin with qualitative research to de?ne the scope and to identify
attributes. Subsequently, numerous studies developing service quality scales ?rst
identi?ed perceptual attributes and then categorized the dimensions (Dabholkar et al.,
1996; Parasuraman et al., 1988; 2005). Therefore, based on the process of service
quality measurement, this study identi?es perceptual attributes of night markets by a
qualitative research method.
Parasuraman et al. (1988) proposed the ?ve widely known general service industry service
attributes (SERVQUAL): tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy.
These attributes emphasize “pure” service settings because they focus on the perceptual
attributes of the interaction process between the personnel providing the service and the
consumers. However, previous studies have considered these attributes to be not
completely suitable for service quality evaluations of mixed merchandise/facilities and
services, such as retail stores, food services and upscale restaurants (Dabholkar et al.,
1996; Raajpoot, 2002; Ryu and Jang, 2008). The service attributes of these types of
industries emphasize not only the attributes of the interactions between people but also
more highly emphasize facility and environment attributes, such as the facility’s esthetic,
ambience, lighting, service products, layout, social factors and design factors (Raajpoot,
2002; Ryu and Jang, 2008).
When engaging in travel activities, tourists often require professional services at various
destinations, such as those provided by group tour guides and national park personnel
who provide information and help. Thus, the SERVQUAL scale proposed by Parasuraman
et al. (1988) is typically used when discussing the service quality of tourism service
personnel. For example, Chen et al. (2006) used the SERVQUAL scale in their discussion
on tourist assessments of satisfaction over national park introduction information and
services. The results of their study indicate that tourists have greater satisfaction regarding
introduction abilities, which include aspects such as reliability, responsiveness and
assurance.
One of the objectives of this study is to focus on the performance of street vending services
in night markets. We emphasize on the interaction quality between tourists and vendors.
Based on previous studies (Parasuraman et al., 1985), we de?ne the vending service
attribute as the perceptual service attributes of tourists when vendors provide services.
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3. Research methods
The purpose of this study is to investigate the facilitating reasons of visiting night markets
from the supply-side perspective with core resources and attributes. To accomplish such
a goal, we select Taipei’s Shilin Night Market as a case study because it is among the top
destinations most foreign tourists visit when coming to Taiwan (Taiwan Tourism Bureau,
2012). First, this study characterizes the core resources of night markets through ?eld
observation to explore the practiced resources. We recruited and trained ten university
student observers and conducted on-site observation of Shilin Night Market service
providers between October 2011 and December 2011. The data obtained and recorded
through observations include their locations, the categories of stores and the ranges of
product prices. We acquire 744 usable data of vendors.
Second, we conducted in-depth interviews with vendors and tourists to understand their
opinions and perceptions of service attributes when a vendor transmits a service. This
study selects interviewees by tour leaders’ recommendations, and Table I shows the
pro?les of each interviewee. The tourists interviewed are from various countries: Japan,
South Korea, China, Vietnam, the UK, the USA and some from Taiwan. All vendors
interviewed had over ten years of night market business operations. Therefore, the
interviewees in this study are generally suitable for this research topic. The main questions
we posed when interviewing service providers include the following:
What attitude or technique do you apply when rendering a service to customers?
In your opinion, what are the key attributes of service for night markets?
The main questions during interviews with the tourists include the following:
When interacting with night market vendors, what do you perceive to be the key
attributes of service?
After spending time at the night market, what are your perceptions regarding its
attraction?
These questions for interviews are modi?ed from Parasuraman et al. (1985).
Table I Pro?les of interviewees
Subjects Pro?le
Tourists Female, 26 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Female, 30 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Female, 50 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Female, 44 years old, of?ce lady, Taiwanese
Male, 53 years old, white-collar, Taiwanese
Female, 25 years old, student, Vietnamese
Female, 26 years old, teacher, American
Male, 39 years old, teacher, British
Male, 43 years old, white collar worker, Japanese
Female, 32 years old, of?ce lady, South Korean
Female, 37 years old, housewife, Chinese
Male, 22 years old, student, Macao, Chinese
Street vendors Male, providing stir-fried food for 50 years
Male, providing braised food for 22 years
Male, providing papaya milk for 47years
Female, providing cold sweetmeats for 20 years
Female, providing icy foods for 40 years
Female, providing sausage foods for 40 years
Male, providing fried chicken for 20 years
Female, providing hot sweetmeats for 10 years
Male, providing ?sh-ball foods for 10 years
Male, providing skateboarding articles for 12 years
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This study uses content analysis suggested by Charley (1993) to acquire the service
attribute dimensions of night markets. Interviews were recorded and converted into text.
The ?rst step in data analysis is to decide the level of analysis. We decided to code for a
single word, such as “hawking”, and for phrases such as “not being overly persistent or
keeping a close watch on customers”. According to the de?nitions of service attributes, two
judges independently coded the text into 54 analysis units. Subsequently, through
collective discussions and a consensus between the researchers and judges, we extracted
a total of 40 analysis units from the original 54 units. Finally, judges independently sorted
the 40 analysis units into categories. We obtain an inter-judge reliability value of 0.81 and
an intra-judge reliability value of 0.88, demonstrating a considerable high reliability for the
collection of the service attribute dimensions.
4. Results
In this study, we evaluate vendors operating at Shilin Night Market by using data collected
from 744 vendors. This data include information on their geographical location, type of
products sold and the lowest/highest prices charged on products. We use the SPSS
software to characterize the appearance of night markets, taking the descriptive statistics
of the observation data and information gathered from our interviews.
4.1 Categories of services
Table II shows the service-type distribution of Shilin Night Market. The results indicate that
food- and non-food-related vendors account for 43 and 57 per cent, respectively. The
products/services offered include food, beverages, apparel, shoes, bags, sundries,
electronic products, games and other products, which satisfy tourist needs and demands,
such as eating, drinking, clothing, using, playing and entertainment.
Regarding food-related products, traditional Taiwanese snacks comprise the highest
percentage, showcasing the main night market characteristic of the local food culture. The
next most popular service is beverages, such as tea, bean curd pudding and iced
beverages. Foreign foods and creative cuisine also comprise a considerable percentage.
Regarding non-food-related products, night markets primarily provide apparel and
footwear to satisfy buyers’ demands. Games for entertainment such as balloon shooting,
baseball grids, pinball machines and ?shing also make up a considerable percentage.
Based on the service content offered at Shilin Night Market, we conclude that night markets
encompass diverse services and can satisfy the demands of tourists in all age groups.
Table II Categories of services and type of operator in the Shilin Night Market
Categories of services Store Street vendor Total (%)
Food-related
Beverages 20 34 54 7.3 42.9
Traditional Taiwanese snacks 91 96 187 25.1
Foreign food 21 13 34 4.6
Creative cuisine 8 8 16 2.2
Other food 21 7 28 3.8
Non-food-related
Apparel 157 11 168 22.6 57.1
Shoes 29 4 33 4.4
Bags 8 4 12 1.6
Accessory 32 21 53 7.1
Sundries 28 4 32 4.3
Electronic products 4 1 5 0.7
Games 5 32 37 5.0
Others 76 9 85 11.4
Total 500 244 744 100 100
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Food courts are a part of the important advertising image used by the Taiwan Government
to promote tourism in the country. This is also the origin of the brand name “Shilin Night
Market”. According to vendors interviewed, they stated that Shilin Night Market developed
from an early market in Shilin, where fresh groceries were offered in the morning and snack
vendors sold local Taiwanese snacks in the evening. During its growth, unique and
well-known products were developed and offered at the night market, such as Shilin
sausages, small buns wrapped in large buns and stir-fried squids, all of which are now
associated with and have become symbols for Shilin Night Market.
Through our onsite observations and interviews conducted in this study, we ?nd that Shilin
Night Market has long queues and innovative products. However, the development of night
markets as a form of business originated from the gathering force of traditional products.
This development has been sustained by and within the attractiveness of innovative
products, which are tested by market forces. In other words, products that are accepted by
tourists tend to survive and become tradition, while products and services that do not
appeal to tourists/locals are replaced with new products, which are tested once again to
see whether they can be adapted into the market as brands. Therefore, the vitality of night
markets is demonstrated in its interweaving between tradition and innovation.
4.2 Prices
Excluding information on vendors who refused to be interviewed and price information that
could not be assessed, we obtain 479 and 408 sample data for the lowest and highest unit
prices for service at Shilin Night Market, respectively, as shown in Table III. Regarding the
lowest unit prices, products priced at less than US$3.3 comprise approximately 70 per cent
of that on offer, of which 50 per cent of these products have a lowest unit price of less than
US$1.6. Even among the products with the highest unit prices, 47 per cent of them are still
below USA$3.3.
We observe that the lowest unit prices for food items are primarily less than US$1.6, and the
highest unit prices are less than US$3.3, indicating that tourists and locals can enjoy good
food at night markets at a cost of approximately US$3.3 or less. The lowest unit price range
for the majority of apparel is US$1.61 to US$10, and both the lowest and highest unit prices
for games are less than US$3.3. Therefore, we conclude that tourists and locals can visit
and consume in night markets for a cost of only US$3.3. In general, the service prices of
night markets offer the affordable consumption of goods and services.
4.3 Geographic information
The geographical location domain of Shilin Night Market constitutes the Shilin shopping
district and food court (Figure 1). Compared to other tourist night market destinations in
Table III The lowest/highest prices for services at the Shilin Night Market
Unit price Less than US$1.6 US$ 1.61-3.3 US$ 3.31-10 US$ 10.1-20 More than US$ 20 Total
Lowest price
Food-related 205 48 6 0 0 259
Costumes and accessories 6 40 54 21 25 145
Articles for daily use 8 3 3 0 2 16
Games 16 0 0 0 0 16
Others 9 7 14 7 5 42
Total 244 98 77 28 32 479
Highest price
Food-related 96 79 37 13 4 229
Costumes and accessories 1 1 3 19 91 115
Articles for daily use 0 0 2 2 11 15
Games 13 1 0 0 0 14
Others 0 3 4 1 27 35
Total 110 84 46 35 133 408
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Taipei City, this famous one is considerably larger and well laid out. Because of the vast
area surrounding Shilin Night Market, many businesses can be accommodated to provide
an extensive range of products to tourists. In addition, the Shilin area is served by the
metropolitan area’s MRT train system and many bus lines and shuttles, which increase the
accessibility of this location.
Based on the current geographical distribution of service types, we can portray the
development path of Shilin Night Market. In other words, the temple there is the center
around which an agglomeration of food businesses is situated. Expanding outward,
apparel and game and entertainment vendors surround the food businesses, forming a
comprehensive market where diverse products and services are provided that,
simultaneously, offer various functions for tourists and local entertainment.
Figure 1 Geographic agglomeration of vendors in the Shilin Night Market
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4.4 Service attributes
Relying on our content analysis methods, we gather together four service attributes
regarding night market service vendors. We present the classi?cations and discussions of
these attributes below.
4.4.1 Performance. At a night market, service workers display various abilities and
techniques to attract visitors to their stalls, such as providing entertaining events when
offering their services. These performing attributes include:
having a sense of humor;
promoting the products by popular or famous celebrities/personalities;
interacting with visitors through chit-chats and teasing;
hawking;
using live performances and attractive attire to draw in the crowd; and
allowing visitors to take photos.
4.4.2 Empathy. Service staffs usually understand tourists’ demands. These kinds of
attributes include:
understanding tourists’ needs;
providing individual or individualized attention to customers;
being empathetic to customers;
being un-overly persistent or keeping a close watch on tourists’ window-shopping;
being thoughtful and tolerant to customers’ concerns;
providing price/volume discounts;
making jokes and pleasantries;
conducting chats with customers;
mentioning the opening/closing hours of business; and
allowing customers to sample/test certain products before purchasing.
4.4.3 Responsiveness. Service vendors/staff are usually prepared to provide services to
tourists all the time. These service attributes include:
possessing and using foreign language skills, using hand/sign language or gestures;
using prior experience abilities;
remembering clients’ food orders;
giving prompt and ef?cient services/deliveries;
coordinating and providing suggestions or recommendations to clients when required;
distributing table/order tags to remind clients of their seating arrangements;
apologizing whenever any errors occur; and
offering to compensate for any service mistakes.
4.4.4 Courtesy. Pertaining to the courtesy attribute, the service workers must handle and
receive customers with respect, through polite responses to customers’ needs, concerns
and requirements by being gentle, friendly, caring and generally behaving professionally
and portraying good attitudes and mannerisms. The courtesy attribute must include
behaviors such as af?nity and patience, warm pleasant smiles, joyful and passionate
attitudes, positive and enthusiastic personalities and respectful and friendly expressions,
among others.
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5. Discussions and implications
This study examines the service contents of night markets through a ?eld observation to
describe the nature of such markets. We interviewed service vendors and tourists in-depth
to explore the service attributes of vendors at night markets. The research results ?nd that
the attractiveness of night markets comes from a diversity of service contents and local
food and affordable consumption, as well as the service attributes of vendors, who give
tourists physical perceptions and personnel perceptions as noted in Table IV. Night
markets provide various foods, beverages, apparel, games and other products to satisfy
consumer demand and display a great diversity in the services provided. Food products
actually comprise approximately 50 per cent of the services provided at Shilin Night
Market. This ?nding supports that of previous studies, which have considered food and
tourism to be inseparably related (Hall and Mitchell, 2000; Henderson et al., 2012).
Traditional Taiwanese-style snacks comprise the largest percentage of food services
offered at night markets, showcasing the night market characteristic of the local food
culture and enabling tourists to experience the local lifestyle. A tourist we interviewed had
this to say: “I wanted to see what local people eat, and maybe have a taste [. . .] ” (Tourist
J). Data from our ?eld observations show that foreign foods and creative cuisines also
account for a considerable percentage of the services, corresponding to the results from
the experiences of tourists concerning the diverse foods offered at night markets (Lee et al.,
2008). Our study also ?nds that the prices at night markets display an affordable
consumption phenomenon, which corresponds to the ?ndings of previous studies on the
experiences of tourists in regard to low prices in night markets and hawker centers (Lee et
al., 2008; Henderson et al., 2012). Therefore, traditional snacks, creative cuisine and
affordable consumption are important factors for attracting tourists/local visitors to night
markets. Local foods and affordable consumption can hence be emphasized for promoting
city tourism.
There is a certain geographical aggregation of the provided services at night markets.
Food courts and beverage vendors are located around a temple (which is also the center
of the night market), and apparel and game stalls congregate at the border of the night
markets. This geographical distribution of vendors re?ects the development trace of Shilin
Night Market, which grew out from periodic temple festivals and then attracted an
agglomeration of snack and other vendors to provide various kinds of services. Tourists are
able to not only acquire shopping enjoyment but also experience the meaning of the local
temple through a visit to Shilin Night Market. This implies that a night market alongside a
temple may be more popular than other night markets without a nearby temple, thereby
luring more tourists. Accordingly, it is recommended that the local government can
integrate temple festivals and local foods into an attractive visitor plan to promote the night
market as a tourism destination.
Table IV The offerings of Shilin NM and tourists’ perceived attraction
Offerings of shilin NM Tourists’ perceived attraction
Service contents Physical perception
All kinds of merchandise and services Delicious food
Local foods and creative cuisine Diversi?cation/multiplicity
Inexpensive and affordable prices Novelty
Larger market area Accessibility
Location advantages Fame and uniqueness
Near city center Local culture
Near a temple Affordability
Service attributes Personnel perception
Performing Entertaining
Empathy Courtesy
Courtesy
Responsive
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A night market comprises various street vendors and retail stores that provide diverse
services, which further enhance the attractiveness of the market in regard to its size. As
stated by tourist “B” we interviewed: “[. . .] Shilin Night Market is large, and many items can
be purchased there [. . .]”. Shilin Night Market also possesses several development
advantages geographically. Its location, for example, can be treated as a traf?c hub (it has
its own MRT train station), and it is close to a local religious center, thereby bringing
accessibility to it as a destination. In addition, many different levels of schools are located
around Shilin Night Market and its environs. As a result, the market attracts huge crowds
that congregate around the area compared to other business districts. As indicated by
another tourist we interviewed: “[. . .] Shilin Night Market is crowded and lively [. . .]”
(Tourist L).
The results of this study agree with the ?ndings of previous studies, which have indicated
that the night market atmosphere leaves a vivid impression on visitors (Lee et al., 2008). Our
study further agrees with previous results in the literature – that is, a mixture of a variety of
stores and atmospheres is an important factor that in?uences the desire of visitors to seek
out these destinations (Teller and Reutterer, 2008). In other words, the scale and mixture of
a night market affect the intentions of tourists. Therefore, this study concludes that a night
market with a large market area and which is close to the center of the city can easily attract
large crowds and bring about a vibrant interaction atmosphere between tourists and
visitors. The local government can choose this type of night market for its tourism
promotions.
Over the decades, Shilin Night Market has emerged as a popular destination in Taipei
where products are created and displayed for use and consumption. These products have,
at times, become symbolic of Shilin Night Market. Many innovative products can be found
there that oftentimes draw huge crowds. Aside from providing traditional/local foods as its
main products/branding, continual innovative styles of products and services have become
the necessary trend at Shilin Night Market to satisfy the needs and expectations of tourists
and locals wishing to experience new trends and gather new information at the market. This
inference can explain the ?nding that “novelty-seeking, exercising and experiencing local
culture and customs are the major factors that motivate tourists to shop in the tourist night
market” (Hsieh and Chang, 2006, p. 138). Based on this discussion, we propose a
proposition that the development of the categories of services at night markets is based on
traditional snacks, as well as a continual innovation of products to attract tourists. In other
words, the vitality of night markets demonstrates their interwoven nature between tradition
and innovation to meet the needs of both tourists and local visitors. As a result, a night
market not only possesses traditional unique foods but also creates innovation products/
services that are the most critical factors for sustainable development.
The service attributes displayed during the process of interaction between night market
service providers and tourists/locals include: performing, empathy, responsiveness and
courtesy, among others. Comparing to the service providers of other service industries
(Parasuraman et al., 1988), service vendors at night markets also possess responsiveness
and empathy when they interact with customers, with courtesy especially emphasized. This
may be related to the nature of hospitality ingrained in the Taiwanese. Tourists are “guests”
and so must be “treated with propriety”. As stated by vendor “A” we interviewed: “There is
more friendliness in a night market. We see customers as friends, we treat them with great
enthusiasm [. . .] ” In addition, performing is a special attribute at night markets that differs
from other service industries. Many vendors gather at night markets and present some
unique hawking methods to sell their products – the use of a live performance has become
an important technique that vendors use to attract tourists/locals to visit, shop, eat and play
at their vendor booths/stores. Interesting performances by vendors can produce a lively
atmosphere, and this is one of the important reasons for tourists to visit a night market. As
stated by tourist “B” we interviewed: “[. . .] (I come) to see the hawker man [. . .] he even
sprays juice when performing [. . .]”. Hence, vendors should cultivate special hawking
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techniques and treat visitors with courtesy. These actions will make visitors be deeply
impressed with the vendors in night markets, thereby creating a positive intention for a
revisit.
The results of this exploratory study of night markets, and especially Shilin Night Market,
provide insights to other cities or countries attempting to develop and promote tourism
and/or informal sectors, such as night markets and street vending businesses to create
jobs, attract tourists and revenue and enhance economic growth. Although the service
contents of night markets examined in this study were limited to only Taipei’s Shilin Night
Market, the ?ndings may not present a general structure for all night markets around the
world. In addition, our study has proposed the service attributes related to the interaction
between service providers and tourists/visitors. We suggest that future studies can
quantitatively examine the relationship between service attributes and the attractiveness of
tourism destinations so as to enhance a more thorough understanding of the nature of night
markets.
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Corresponding author
Yi-Fei Chuang can be contacted at: [email protected]
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