Predictors of Repeat Winery Visitation in North Carolina

Wine tourism is often central to a winery’s business model and an important component of rural economic development. One issue is the identification of key drivers of repeat business; measured in this case by intention to pay a return visit to a winery or wine region. The purpose of this study is to identify specific factors that may influence wine tourists’ intentions to revisit a winery or wine region in North Carolina. Exhaustive CHAID decision tree analysis was used to identify statistically significant visitor characteristics that influence respondents’ intentions to revisit a winery or wine region. Customer service emerged as the best predictor of visitors’ intention to revisit.