Although the success of a theme park depends heavily on visitors’ experience, few studies have sought to understand visitor behaviors. This research employs the experience economy model to investigate how different types of experience influence visitors’ satisfaction with the theme park and intention to revisit. A structural equation modeling approach with 530 visitors showed that both educational and esthetic experiences in theme parks significantly influenced visitors’ satisfaction while escapism was the only important experience that led to intention to revisit. This study offers a conceptual and specific perspective for understanding the various experiences available to a visitor and their separate impacts on satisfaction and intention to revisit. Findings provide concrete suggestions for developing effective programs and promotional materials, which in turn will help theme park operators to enhance their offerings and services and enrich visitors’ experiences.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast customer perceptions related to satisfaction with conventional grocery stores as compared to specialty grocery stores. The study examines store attributes of product assortment, price, quality, and service in order to determine which attributes have the greatest impact on store satisfaction for each store format.Design/methodology/approach: A mail survey was sent to a sample of specialty and conventional grocery store customers. The ten state sample was drawn from US households located in postal (ZIP) codes in areas where national specialty stores (e.g. whole foods) were located.Findings: Perception of satisfaction were higher among specialty grocery store customers compared to conventional grocery store customers. For both store formats, store price, product assortment, service and quality positively influenced satisfaction. Stepwise regression indicated that each store attribute contributed differently to store satisfaction for conventional and specialty store formats.Research limitations/implications: The results demonstrate that price, product assortment, quality, and employee service influence store satisfaction regardless of store type (conventional stores or specialty stores). However, the degree of influence of these attributes varied by store type. The results imply that while specialty store shopper satisfaction characteristics are clearly delineated, conventional store shopper characteristics are more difficult to pinpoint. Research limitations include a sample that is more highly educated and has higher incomes than the average American household.Originality/value: Despite the growth of new product categories and new industry players, few studies have investigated customer satisfaction within the retail food industry. Comparisons of specialty and conventional food stores are equally scarce.

This study tested a conceptual model in order to examine the role of specific image formation agents in forming destination image and place attachment from the perspective of pop star fans. By examining each construct’s subdimensions, the significant path analysis results supported the proposed model and offered a holistic view of the relationships among the variables, thus extending the literature. Findings suggested that autonomous image formation agents have d3istinct roles in forming destination image and place attachment in comparison with induced and organic agents. The findings highlight the important role of destination image in mediating the relationship between image formation agents and place attachment. This study further revealed a direct impact of image formation agents on place attachment dimensions. Meaningful implications for destination marketers are presented.