Defining the experiential value of auxiliary special events in shopping centres: a shopper's perspective

The purpose of this study is to define the experiential value of auxiliary special events offered by shopping centres, which are also classified as special event entertainment (Sit et al., 2003). Through a series of focus group discussions with shoppers, this study identifies that shoppers define the experiential value of special event entertainment by four dimensions and they are labelled as ‘entertainment/economic value’, ‘social value’, exploration value’ and ‘escapism value’. With the exception of entertainment/economic value, all dimensions of experiential value relative to special event entertainment are considered to be hedonic in nature. On the contrary, entertainment/economic value is considered to be ‘hybrid’ oriented as it comprises both hedonic and utilitarian characteristics. Contributions to marketing theory and retail practice are discussed