The Influence of hosting mega-event on destination branding in terms of tourism in private sector point of view. Case study of Olympic Games in Sochi (Russia), 2014

Abstract

Destination branding is an emerging and argued subject in the fields of management, marketing, tourism and politics. Hosting mega-events is associated with a certain degree of benefit for host destination. Little number of researches, however, investigated the opportunities of hosting mega-event in terms of destination branding. This study, therefore, is aimed to identify the strategic branding opportunities created by hosting mega-event for a host nation based on the case study of Sochi (Russia) hosting Winter Olympic Games in 2014. Big amount of Sochi’s residents are involved in tourism and hospitality activities. Olympic Games in Sochi are considered to be the most expensive ones in the whole history of Olympic Games, private sector representatives were one of the main group of investors. That is why legacies in terms of tourism from private sector’s point of view are considered in current research. The study used qualitative method of data collection by conducting semi-structured private sector stakeholders (n = 12) of the area three years post the event. Sochi is the main resort area in the county. When answering the major research question of this research the major impact on Sochi’s brand of hosting winter Olympic Games in 2014 was discovered. That impact is observed by the “fresh air” brought to the area, new people (both tourists and hosts) coming to Sochi, higher level of standards set, new opportunities for tourism appeared, Sochi is becoming known worldwide and also new responsibilities of maintaining and developing the existing level of quality established. Some other key findings were discovered while performing this research as well. The findings of current paper might be considered as useful ones by future host destinations and Sochi’s stakeholders (destination marketing organizations, event managers and tour operators).