Relationship quality between exhibitors and organizers: A perspective from Mainland China’s exhibition industry

Abstract

Despite the fact that many destinations around the world have invested significant resources to build large-scale exhibition centers and host exhibitions to gain both economic and non-economic benefits (e.g., Jago and Deery, 2010), there is a paucity of research on exhibitions in general, and on the relationships among key stakeholders in particular. This study aims to address this research gap by investigating the relationship between exhibitors and exhibition organizers in view of its potential to significantly affect the success of a particular exhibition, and in the broader context the success of exhibition destinations. A survey collected 616 responses from exhibitors exhibiting at nine trade fairs in four cities in Mainland China. Study findings confirmed that exhibitors’ relationship quality with organizers is a second-order construct composed of four factors: (1) service quality and relationship satisfaction, (2) trust and affective commitment, (3) communication, and (4) calculative commitment. Furthermore, perceived relationship quality differed significantly, depending on key characteristics of organizers and exhibitors. Potential reasons that might contribute to these differences are explored and implications are discussed.