An Exploratory Study of Buyer-Supplier Relationships in International Tourism: The Case of Japanese Wholesalers and Australian Suppliers

There is a lack of research into how firms in the international tourism industry develop and maintain relationships with counterpart firms. It was viewed as particularly useful to consider the relationships of Australian suppliers with wholesalers in certain Asian countries in which wholesalers often exert considerable market influence. An exploratory study was carried out in two major gateways of Australia's most important inbound market-Japan. The study focuses on the perceptions and attitudes of Australian tourism suppliers in their relationships with large Japanese tour wholesalers and inbound operators in the Australian market. Conceptually the research contributes to the understanding of dependency in a cross-national tourism context; managerially, it offers insights into how local suppliers can successfully manage their relationships with Japanese wholesalers.