Music festivals and destination branding in secondary cities: Perceived value and visitor loyalty at the purple weekend festival in León, Spain

This research examines how music festivals may influence visitor perceptions of secondary cities, with implications for destination branding and image management. The Purple Weekend Festival in León, Spain, serves as the empirical context. The study analyses the mechanism by which attendees' motivations translate into loyalty to the festival and, indirectly, into broader destination-related outcomes. Using a quantitative methodology based on 390 questionnaires completed by attendees and structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), hypotheses about the relationships between motivations, perceived value, satisfaction and loyalty were tested. The results showed that motivations centred on cultural identity and quality experience did not directly influence loyalty but rather did so through perceived value, which is structured in three dimensions: festival value (infrastructure and services), destination value (León and what it has to offer), and musical value (artistic quality). This perceived value strongly mediates the relationship between motivations and loyalty and, in turn, is a key antecedent of satisfaction, which is the strongest predictor of attitudinal and behavioural loyalty. The findings highlight the importance of experiential quality and value formation processes in shaping visitor loyalty in secondary cities. From a managerial perspective, the study provides insights for destination branding, positioning, and image management by showing how music festivals can enhance visitor experiences, attract niche tourism segments, and contribute to the competitive development of secondary cities such as León.