Creative City Cologne: An Exploratory Case Study of the Tourism Opportunities of the Creative Quarter Cologne- Ehrenfeld A dissertation submitted by Katharina Volpp in partial completion of the award of Master of Arts in European Tourism Management I hereby declare that the dissertation submitted is wholly the work of Katharina Volpp. Any other contributors or sources have either been referenced in the prescribed manner or are listed in the acknowledgements together with the nature and scope of their contribution. School of Tourism, Bournemouth University University of Savoy NHTV Breda (2011/2012) DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP I agree that, should the University wish to retain it for reference purposes, a copy of my dissertation may be held by Bournemouth University normally for a period of 3 academic years. I understand that once the retention period has expired my dissertation will be destroyed. Confidentiality I confirm that this dissertation does not contain information of a commercial or confidential nature or include personal information other than that which would normally be in the public domain unless the relevant permissions have been obtained. In particular, any information which identifies a particular individuals religious or political beliefs, information relating to their health, ethnicity, criminal history or gender, has been made anonymous, unless permission has been granted for its publication from the person to whom it relates. Ethical and Health & Safety issues I confirm that any ethical considerations associated with the proposed research dissertation were discussed with my Supervisor and an appropriate research strategy was developed, which would take them into account. I also confirm that any potential health & safety risks were discussed with my Supervisor and, where necessary, appropriate precautions were documented, including an appropriate risk analysis and the submission to my Supervisor of an ethics checklist form. Copyright The copyright for this dissertation remains with me. Request for information I agree that this dissertation may be made available as the result of a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act. Signed: …………………………………………………………………………………… Name: Katharina Volpp Date: August 24th, 2012 Program: MA European Tourism Management I ABSTRACT In times of today, tourism destinations are competing more and more with each other. The copying of successful strategies, universal brands and products leads to standardization and degradation of tourism products. Therefore, it becomes even more important to find a Unique Selling Point. Slogans like „Creative City“or „City of culture“ are seen as drivers of attractiveness. The theories of Landry (2008) and Florida (2002) state the importance of creativity in the urban environment as a catalyst for economic regional growth. Especially Florida (2002) points out that the creative class which is the cause of economic growth is attracted by heterogeneous and tolerant areas. In this thesis the creative city of Cologne was chosen as the wider setting for the analysis of the tourism opportunities of the creative quarter Cologne- Ehrenfeld. Tourism research about the attractiveness of creative quarters is only done about creative, non-urban districts in London which helped to identify potential markets for Ehrenfeld. Tourism data about the destination Ehrenfeld does not exist. Therefore, the research design of an explorative case study was chosen. 11 Semi-structured personal interviews with diverse stakeholders (Creative institutions and not-for-profit organizations), direct observation, participant observation and a questionnaire for the interview partners were adopted in order to be able to analyze the tourism opportunities and furthermore to gain an in-depth and balanced view on the topic. The findings of the research revealed that Ehrenfeld has not a high volume of major attraction, except the mosque. The short distance to the city centre and the easy accessibility serve as an advantage regarding the tourism potential. The quarter can be categorized as in the beginning phase of tourism development due to the tourist characteristic of being a pioneer. Art, parties, culture and urban lifestyle are seen as major motivations for tourists. The profile of the off-the beaten track tourist is reflected in the outcomes of the questionnaire and the interviews. People who work in the creative sector visit the quarter more likely due to their affinity with the creative environment. Recommendations regarding tourism development seem obvious but it has to be considered that the strength of Ehrenfeld is its heterogeneity and diversity. Moreover, the quarter is not constructed for tourism purposes. Therefore, tourism development plans have to be developed and implemented carefully and with a sustainable respectful intention to protect the distinctive attributes of the quarter. With heavy promotion, Ehrenfeld would be soon loose its appeal. Words: 19.979 II ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation is the final project of the one year Master studies of European Tourism Management. The program was challenging but I am happy to have made new cultural experiences and to improve my language skills. The time I have spent in England and France let me see academic topics and tasks from a different perspective and therefore, broadens my horizon. The dissertation was by far the most challenging part due to time span of the project and the high degree of personal involvement. There several people who supported me and to whom I am especially grateful for. First of all, I would like to thank my family for their endless support and for the fact that they always encourage me to follow my intuition and aspirations and above all, they encourage me to go my own way. A special thanks goes to my supervisor Vincent Platenkamp who guided me throughout the whole process of writing my thesis with useful comments and great ideas. Additionally, I highly appreciated the willingness of my interview partners to spend their time to provide me with useful and interesting insights. Without them, I would not have been able to complete my dissertation. Furthermore, I would like to thank my dear friend Silke Wencki who was my companion and my crutch during that time. III TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 1.1. Introduction to the topic …………………………………………………………..… 1 1.2. Research Goal ………………………………………………………………….… 2 1.3. Research Questions ……………………………………………………….…… 2 1.4. Relevance of the research ……………………………………………………. 3 1.5. Methodology ………………………………………………………………….… 3 1.6. Thesis Structure ………………………………………………………………….… 4 CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 5 2.1. The Creative City ……………………………………………………………….…… 5 2.2. The 3 T’s of economic development …………………………………………..… 7 2.3. The creative milieu ………………………………………………………….… 8 2.4. The creative class …………………………………………………………….. 10 2.5. The creative quarter ………………………………………………….…….…… 11 2.6. Reflections on the model ………………………………………………………..…… 13 2.7. The new tourist ………………………………………………………………….… 14 2.8. Tourism styles ………………………………………………………………….… 15 2.8.1. Type of tourism that fits to the new tourism type …………………….. 15 2.8.2. Urban tourism ……………………………………………………….…… 16 2.8.3. Off the beaten track tourism …………………………………………….. 17 2.8.4. Shift from cultural to creative industries ………………………..…… 19 2.8.5. Creative tourism …………………………………………………..… 22 2.9.Potential markets- comparison with other destination ……………………..……… 23 2.9.1. London- Spitalfields ………………………………………..…………… 23 2.9.2. London- case study of four non- central districts …………..………… 25 2.10. Conclusion ........................................................................................................... 28 IV CHAPTER 3: THE CREATIVE CITY COLOGNE AND THE CREATIVE QUARTER EHRENFELD- BACKGROUND ANALYSIS 31 3.1. A short overview ……………………………………………………………….…… 31 3.2. Tourism in Cologne ………………………………………………….………… 31 3.3. The creative industries in Cologne ……………………………………….…… 31 3.4. Ehrenfeld ………………………………………………………………………….… 33 3.5. Tourism Opportunities for Ehrenfeld ……………………………………..……… 35 CHAPTER 4:ANALYSIS 36 4.1. Methodology ……………………………………………………………….…… 36 4.1.1. Introduction …………………………………………………….……… 36 4.1.2. Research Strategy and Design …………………………………….……… 36 4.1.3. Research Methods ……………………………………………………. 38 4.1.4. Research Measures ……………………………………………….…… 40 4.1.5. Research Sample ……………………………………………………. 40 4.1.6. Limitations ……………………………………………………..……… 40 4.2. Findings …………………………………………………………………….……… 41 4.2.1. Characteristics Ehrenfeld ………………………………………..…… 41 4.2.2. The creative quarter ………………………………………………….… 42 4.2.3. Networks …………………………………………………….……… 42 4.2.4. Cooperation with tourism organizations ……………………...……… 43 4.2.5. Tourism attractions ………………………………………..…………… 43 4.2.6. Tourists in the creative institutions and the mosque …………...………… 45 4.2.7. Profile tourists Ehrenfeld ………………………………………….… 45 4.2.8. Outcomes of the questionnaire ………………………………………..…… 46 4.2.9 Tourism development ……………………………..………......................... 47 4.3. Discussions ………………………………………………………………..…… 47 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 52 CHAPTER 6: RECOMMENDATIONS 55 CHAPTER 7: BIBLIOGRAPHY 58 CHAPTER 8: APPENDICES 64 V LIST OF TABLES Table 1: The 3 T’s of economic development ………………………………... 7 Table 2: Rationales for cultural and creative industry quarter ……………… 12 Table 3: Mean tourism types ……………………………………………………. 46 VI LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Thesis Structure ………………………………………………………… 4 Figure 2: Changes in the drivers of tourism over time ……………………….… 15 Figure