In the period 2008-2018, the positive variation of tourism industry receipts was higher than the worldwide GDP growth (UNWTO, 2019a). In 2018, the European Union was the region with the highest total tourist receipts, while France and Italy were amongst the top six tourism earners in the world (UNWTO, 2019a). In the case of France, “consumer foodservice accelerated its digitalisation in 2018, which allowed for improved customer experiences and/or production optimisation. Whilst operators widely innovated in terms of digital tools to consolidate or gain share, digital usage varies significantly between channels” (Euromonitor International, 2019a: 45). The mentioned adaptation is not only related to the use of new technologies, but to the experience itself. In the Italian market, for example, “consumers are also showing themselves to be increasingly willing to try new products, ingredients and flavours” (Euromonitor International, 2019b: 33). Cross-cultural empirical studies confirm that novelty-change is a fundamental dimension inherent to innovation in food products (Guerrero et al., 2009). Another important aspect for travellers’ food experiences is surprise, which was related to the simplicity, complexity and genuineness of these moments (Goolaup, Solér & Nunkoo, 2018). In recent years, the number of innovative tourism experiences in terms of sharing economy initiatives has increased (WEF, 2019). Amongst the factors that influenced the growth of sharing economy after 2007 were the reduction of consumer trust in corporations and the purchasing power of consumers (European Union, 2013). In this context, some activities emerged and became key sectors in this area, such as home and car-sharing (Sigala, 2015), which is expected to present a revenue variation from USD 15 billion to USD 335 billion in the period 2014-2025 (UNWTO, 2019b). Concerning meal-sharing platforms, they are considered a potential market, which is currently underdeveloped (UNWTO, 2019b). Conceptually, the sharing economy can be defined as “individuals offering their underutilized assets to others using digital platforms” (Bakker & Twining-Ward, 2018: 13). Thus, amid the aspects that differentiate sharing economy practices from traditional markets are the digital technologies that are used to match consumers and sellers, as well as the word of mouth reviews (Schor, 2014; WEF, 2017). Furthermore, the sharing economy is used to be related to eco-friendly initiatives, like the circular economy (OECD, 2019).
The Role of the Sharing Economy for a Sustainable and Innovative Development of Rural Areas: A Case Study in Sardinia (Italy)