Exploring the Resource-Based View in Bandung Creative

Tourism Sector
Ayu Krishna Yuliawati, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia
ayukrishna@hotmail.com
ABSTRACT
Bandung is known as the Paris Van Java, as a tourism destination since the occupation of the
Dutch. The people of Bandung are a melting pot of talents thus developing the citys creative industry. Nowadays, Tourism plays an important role in the Bandung economy generating substantial revenues and contributing to employment. Bandung is looking towards tourism to help
the city reach this goal. Specifically, Bandung chose its tourism offering by selecting creative
tourism market. Bandung is variety of assets such as human resources, natural resources and
other resources available. Bandungs creative industry can be identified into six industrial sectors (small and medium enterprise) in Bandung which are: (1) knitting industry, (2) apparel textiles, (3) skin and leather goods, (4) footwear, (5) the goods of wood and woven goods of rattan,
bamboo, and the like, (6) publishing industry. While the potential for Bandung to capitalize on
the opportunities presented by this sector is substantial, much remains undiscovered about Bandung current position as well as what might be required to advance the city in this area. The
purpose of this paper is to provide a preliminary examination of Bandungs creative tourism
within a resource-based view framework. The Creative industry have the potential to become
tourism resources thus developing creative tourism in Bandung city. The industry is supported
by Bandung city creative community that always create creative product. The limitation of this
study is that it uses the Creative Tourism literature that has been developed based on North
American and European examples .
KEYWORDS: Creative Tourism, Resource-Based View

ABSTRAK

Bandung dikenal sebagai Paris Van Java, sebagai daerah tujuan wisata sejak jaman penjajahan oleh Belanda. Masyarakat Bandung terdiri dari beragam etnis dan percampuran budaya
sehingga mengembangkan industri kreatif di kota ini. Saat ini, pariwisata memainkan peran
penting dalam perekonomian Bandung menghasilkan pendapatan besar dan memberikan
kontribusi untuk pekerjaan. Bandung sedang menuju pariwisata untuk membantu kota
mencapai tujuan ini. Secara khusus, Bandung menawarkan pariwisata dengan sasaran wisata
kreatif. Bandung memiliki berbagai aset seperti sumber daya manusia, sumberdaya alam dan
sumber daya lainnya yang tersedia. Industri kreatif Bandung dapat diidentifikasi menjadi
enam sektor industri (usaha kecil dan menengah) di Bandung yaitu: (1) merajut industri, (2)
pakaian tekstil, (3) kulit dan kulit barang, (4) alas kaki, (5) barang dari kayu dan barang-wo
ven rotan, bambu, dan sejenisnya, (6) industri penerbitan. Sementara potensi Bandung untuk
cukup tinggi dalam sektor ini, masih banyak potensi yang belum digali untuk memajukan
kota Bandung. Tujuan dari tulisan ini adalah untuk mendeskripsikan pariwisata kreatif
Bandung dalam kerangka pandangan berbasis sumber daya. The Creative industri-coba
memiliki potensi untuk menjadi sumber daya pariwisata sehingga pengembangan pariwisata
kreatif dalam kota Ban-dung. Industri ini didukung oleh komunitas kreatif kota Bandung
yang selalu menciptakan produk kreatif. Keterbatasan penelitian ini adalah bahwa ia
menggunakan literatur Pariwisata Kreatif yang telah dikembangkan berdasarkan Amerika
Utara dan contoh Eropa.
1.INTRODUCTION
UNWTO s Tourism 2020 Vision projects that international arrivals are expected to reach
nearly 1.6 billion by the year 2020. Of these worldwide arrivals in 2020, 1.2 billion will be
intraregional and 0.4 billion will be long-haul travelers. The figure shows that the prospects
for the development of tourism will increase.i The increasing number of tourists have made
countries in ASEAN to develop further their tourism industry, since the industry contribute to
the social economic significance. Indonesia is a country growing in potential in the tourism
industry. Indonesias tourism potential has attracted international tourists. It is reflected in the
increasing quantity of the target number of foreign tourists to Indonesia increased from 2010
as many 7 million, rising to 7.4 million in 2011. In the last three years, the number of tourists
reaching the breaking point in July 2011 with the highest growth month on month to reach
25%.ii
The tourism destination in the world is shifting in its development towards a more cultural
tourism development strategy or to creative tourism. (Richards and Wilson, 2007). Research
indicates that creative tourism have emerged. Indonesia, the term creative tourism has not
been familiarized. The term creative industry is more familiar compared to creative tourism.
The creative industry is the main support in creative tourism development. Creative tourism

gives added valued for the creative industry product, Indonesia is rich in creative tourism potential that can increase competitive advantage and strength its position in international tourism development. Bandung is well known as the city that produce creative works that become
the trend in Indonesia, especially amongst the youth/teenagers. In the last ten years the garment industry and distribution outlet, culinary, and craft products have been abundant in
Bandung City.
As the 4th largest city in Indonesia, with 2.5 million inhabitants, Bandung, based on a survey conducted by the City Planning and Development Agency it was identified there are
4,661 business and communities in the creative industries. The business all are in the form
of legal entity. Sectors of the creative economy in Bandung, generally moving in the field of
fashion, design and music, which mostly run by young people aged 15-25 years. In total the
creative industries in Bandung have absorbed the 344.244 workforce and contribute 11% to
the local economy. iii
The development of creativity in Bandung City is supported by resources and the fact that
many high education institution in technology, business, design and art is located in Bandung
make the city a wealth of talented young people. Tourism product is not only dominated by
the attraction of tourism characterized by sun, sea, and sand which is mass in nature making tourists as passive consumer, but also involving tourists to be more active in the tourism
product they consume. Tourist not only see and observe culture and local tradition, the host
community or try local culinary, but also is involved in the process by learning and involved
in the production process and also disseminate the product. The term consumer have shifted
from prosumer or consumer as well as producer, distributor, and also performer (Ritzer,1997
in Richards and Wilson, 2007).
At the International Conference on Creative Tourism in 2008, redefined the definition of
creative tourism is more specific by stating that the engagement and authentic experience as
central to the creative tourism (King, 2009). This definition also mentions the arts, heritage,
and special character of the place as a place for tourists participatory learning, and further
stated that creative tourism provides an opportunity to the tourists to have / make contact with
the local community and creating a culture of life in the community.
The citys vision is "Strengthening Bandung as a Honorable Service City ', as stated in the
Medium Term Development Plan (RPJMD) in 2009-2013. This made the services sector as
the leading sector of development, and is expected to be the driving force of the economy of
Bandung city. From 2004 to 2007, the service sector is the largest contributor (about 36%) of
the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) in Bandung (source:Bappeda Report 2009).

Tourism, the main product in service, became an integral part of development and jewel in
Bandung service sector. Trade, hotels and restaurants, as well as other services, such as entertainment and recreation services, service sector activities are growing rapidly along with the
development of tourism.
The close proximity of Bandung with Indonesias capital city Jakarta, linked by the availability of toll roads Bandung - Jakarta, generating tourist traffic of Jakarta, especially on
weekends and holidays in large numbers. Accessibility is key for Bandung, it not only to attract domestic tourists market which are residents of Jakarta and its surroundings, but also
the foreign tourists market entering Indonesia through the main gate Soekarno - Hatta Airport, Tangerang and Husein Sastranegara International Airport in Bandung.
The stream of tourists visiting in large numbers is encouraging growth and development of
other tourist attraction, complete diversity-owned tourism potential of the city of Bandung,
such as culinary activities, educational activities, cultural heritage activities, as well as MICE
activities. The development of tourism activities in the city of Bandung is also able to turn the
other economic sectors in creative industries, like the SME shoe industry in Cibaduyut, knitted clothing in Binong industry, in hospitality, restaurant, and souvenirs industry. In addition
to the economic sector, the development of Bandung's tourism also encouraged the revival of
traditional arts and culture that was almost fades away, such as: the benjang, reak, lumping
horse, and Renggong horse.
Bandung is variety of assets such as human resources, natural resources and other resources available. Bandungs creative industry can be identified into six industrial sectors
(small and medium enterprise) in Bandung which are: (1) knitting industry, (2) apparel textiles, (3) skin and leather goods, (4) footwear, (5) the goods of wood and woven goods of rattan, bamboo, and the like, (6) publishing industry. Keeping in mind the rise of creative industry in the city, it became an opportunity to capture the creative tourism sector. The city has
utilized the resources based view approach in the citys tourism planning, policy and strategy.
Bandung city tourism plan called the RIPPARDA 2012-2025 is a translation of the citys vision and mission in regional policy development. RIPPARDA became the legal foundation
and basic considerations in the Medium Term Development Plan and the Strategic Plan for
the Tourism Culture and Tourism Regional Office. Tourism development concept applied the
creative urban tourism.

2. THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK

Definition of creative tourism is introduced by Richards and Raymond in 2000 (Raymond,

2007) as a tourism experience and giving opportunity to tourists to develop their creative potential. The definition is improved by Richards and Wilson (2007) : Tourism which offers
visitors the opportunity to develop their creative potential through active participation in
courses and learning experiences which are characteristic of the holiday destination where
they are undertaken. During the International Conference on Creative Tourism tahun 2008,
the creative tourism is developed into more specific involvement and authentic experience as
the main point in creative tourism. (King, 2009). The definition also states that art, science ,
heritage and special character is a place for participatory learning for tourists: Creative tourism is travel directed toward an engaged and authentic experience, with participative learning in the arts, heritage or special character of a place, and it provides a connection with
those who reside in this place and create this living culture.
King (2009) strengthened the tangible to intangible by drawing the shift from activity tourism that became the traditional culture tourism attraction (old) to creative activity tourism.
Creative tourism development is a complex process that requires coordination between the
following three main elements (Richards and Wilson, 2007): 1.Creative hardware, infrastructure and container to include creative production, consumption, and prosumer;2. Creative
software, include atmospheric/condition, quality of life, diversity, and vibrancy; 3. Creative
man ware, include institutional (such as industry stakeholders, the government, society), and
the rules and regulations.
Richards and Wilson (2007) said that art in creative development is based on the cultural
elements transformation of a place to the experience consumed by tourists. The cultural elements are tangible (can be touched/have physical appearance) is not the only attraction in cultural tourism. The creative tourism up hold the intangible aspect as cultural tourism attraction.
Richards and Wilson describe in the following figure.

Figure 1. The Shift in Tourism Product from tangible to intangible

Source: Richards and Wilson, 2007

King (2009) stregthened the tangible to intangible by drawing the shift from activity tourism that became the traditional culture tourism attraction (old) to creative activity tourism
The RBV of the firm conceptualizes the firm as a bundle of resources, with each firm
having (combination of) resources that are specific to it and distinct from others (Wernerfelt
1995). Barney (1991:105) further note that the sheer existence of resources does not necessarily lead to competitive advantage and that firms can only enjoy competitive advantage if resources and their combinations are: valuable, rare, imperfectly imitable, and imperfectly
substitutable.
Pearce and Robinson (2010:215) states that the intangible asset is an asset that can be easily identified, often found on an organization's balance sheet. These assets include production
facilities, raw materials, financial resources, real estate, and computer while intangible assets
(intangible assets) are resources such as the brand, the reputation of the organization, organizational morale, engineering knowledge, patents and trademarks, as well as the accumulation
experience in an organization. Although intangible asset cannot be touched /seen, it is often
an important asset in creating a competitive advantage.
Valuable resources characteristics are: to add value, rare, hard to imitate, difficult (hard to
imitate), and the ability to take advantage (ability to exploit). Characteristics of the isolation
mechanisms that make resources difficult to imitate and become valuable is as follows:
Competitive Superiority: whether the existing resources in the company can meet customer
needs better than competitors?; Scarcity of resources: is supply relatively limited in
resources? and easily imitated: whether the resource is easily imitated or acquired?
RBV models identify factors that made it difficult to imitate resources: Physical
uniqueness: a unique resource that are physically difficult to replicate; Path dependence:
resources are difficult to imitate because difficult path made by other organizations. This is a
resource that cannot be obtained instantly and have to go through the process, be very
expensive and difficult to do acceleration; Causal ambiguity: a situation that is difficult to

understand by competitors precisely about how an organization creates benefits. Economic

deterrence: a state in which the large investment needed to replicate its resources.
Appropriability: resources developed and controlled by the agency are more valuable than
resource easily bought, sold or moved out from one organization to another organization.
Durability: the more slowly depreciating resources are the more valuable it become.
Substitutability: availability of alternative resources.
Resources is a source of organizational capabilities and capabilities are a source of core
competency, which is the basis of competitive advantage and intangible resources are superior and more potential as a source of core competency than tangible resources. Capability is
the capacity of the organization to use resources that are integrated in order to achieve the desired end. Capability is to create and exploit external opportunities and develop durable advantages when used with the insight and agility. Capabilities are often based on the development, storage, and exchange of information and knowledge through the organization's human
resources. The basis of capability is usually based on the expertise and knowledge of the employees in the organization and their functional expertise. According to Hollenson (2010), the
resources based view (RBV) is the inside out perspective, with proactive quest for market
that allow exploitation of the firm resources.

3. RESEARCH METHOD

Bandung as a creative city has set the policy for the tourism sector to implement creative
tourism. However, nowadays there are few studies that examine the creative tourism sector.
Bandung has anticipated that creative tourism will play a vital role in its economy going forward and the countrys desire to advance this sector is evident. However, little academic research exists to analyze the creative tourism sector in Indonesia.
Tourism strategy and planning are old disciplines in tourism research and practice.
The research challenges the rational design approach to tourism strategy and planning and
proposes instead acceptance of tourism strategies as mixtures of public policy and business
strategy, of rational include resource- based views in analysis and strategy formulation.
Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to provide a preliminary examination of the Bandung
Creative tourism strategy within the RBV framework. The research design use the exploratory research with the objectives to generate insights that will help define the problem situation confronting the researcher ( Hair et.al: 2009).The goal of this exploratory study is to con-

tribute to a foundation for further research on the sector and to provide some early implications for practice.
This paper identify the rational design approach to tourism strategy and planning and proposes acceptance of tourism strategies as mixtures of public policy and business strategy, of
rational as well as emergent strategy design based resource-based views in analysis and strategy formulation.RBV studies are usually for corporations, but this study looks at regional
level ( the city). Dyer and Singh (1998) the combined trans-boundary organization resources
analysis can help company can gain a competitive advantage when they incorporate the network and their resources combined in such a way that cannot be imitated. The current research will study the network as part of the sector in the city and this is a valid unit of analysis.

4. RESULT

Customer/tourists are part of the hospitality service, the customer integration in the
process of creative tourism consumption. For example, in visiting traditional entertainment
center Saung Angklung Udjo, visitors are asked to come play the Angklung. So the experience necessary services performed customer participation in the service delivery process.
Means customers get involved in the play. So customers here serves as a resource for creative
tourism service providers. The higher the extent of customer integration, the higher the potential of the service customer to constitute a resource. While some services involve relatively
little customer integration (e.g., tax preparation, home maintenance services), others involve
high levels of customer integration. Creative tourism clearly falls into the latter category.
Creative tourism is about involving experiences of the tourist as customer in the tourism
service process, it is clear that this sector involves high levels of customer integration. Therefore, there is great potential for the customer to serve as a resource to the service provider and
the entire creative tourism sector.
Development of tourism service and product for creative tourism involved many stakeholders starting from development of strategy for the city. The city government of Bandung
has recently begun fashioning a policy focused on helping Bandung become a Creative City
and has recently gone as far as changing its English motto to home of creative minds. The
Bandung Planning Board (BAPPEDA), as well as some of the citys academics, artists, business people, and citizen groups, has been engaged in formulating and executing a Creative

City Strategy for Bandung. This will foster creative talents that support the creative industrys
growth as part of creative tourism. The city has identified Bandungs creative spaces and
designated creative village (Kampung) as a tourism product/service. Previous to this, nonprofit, and academic sectors in the city conducting activities and research on the creative
tourism product. This can only be achieved by Bandung as the centre of knowledge and creativity within Indonesia for many decades. Its extremely high number of universities per capita (over 50 institutions), many of which focus on arts, science, engineering, and technology
studies, support its image as an intellectual city which attracts young people from all around
Indonesia. Most participants in this study had completed university or are in the process of finishing their studies. The people that come to live, work, and study tend to stay in Bandung .
The citys geography and political history both play a key role in the character of its creative
community. (Andersen et.al,2009). Thus community became the resource of creative industry which support creative tourism in the city.
Creative tourism in Bandung City has been chosen by the Local Municipality as the citys
tourism strategy, and has been embedded in the Tourism Planning document (RIPPARDA).
Tourism planning is often discussed as a question of spatial and investment planning while
tourism strategy is most often discussed as a question of marketing strategy for destinations.
The first is done in the public sphere with stakeholder involvement and the strategic elements
take the form of public policy. That in turn makes the strategic orientation of the plan more
akin to statements of principles than strategic objectives. The second, marketing strategy is
developed in the private sphere dealing with the marketplace of tourism. Being limited to
marketing it will not address value creation across interests at destination level, e.g. how to
achieve sustainability. A combination of the two could perhaps meet the need for tourism
strategy. However, it is rare that the two aspects are presented as pillars of a common public
and private tourism strategy for the destination. (Andersen, 2009). In the case for Bandung,
the planning and strategy developed were in line with the resources available in the city.
The four dominant perspectives on the role of Bandungs Creative City strategy were: to
promote the city as a regional creative centre; to promote urban economic development; to
empower residents at a grassroots level; and finally, to achieve broader urban development
aims. The development of such document has been based on the citys planner view applying
the resources based view approach. Tourism strategy and planning are disciplines in tourism
research and practice. Bandung has also been selected for a 3-year pilot project as the first
Asian city in The British Councils Creative City program. Others have expressed the desire
for Bandung to be the first Asian city to join the United Nations Educational, Scientific and

Cultural Organization (UNESCO)s creative cities network, which promotes cultural tourism
by attracting outsider interest on Bandungs lifestyle (UNESCO, 2008).

4. ANALYSIS
Based on the tourism attraction characteristic in Bandung City dominated by urban tourism, the Bandung city creative tourism potential can be classified into three groups, as follow:
1. Creative tourism attraction based on technology, are tourism activity that gives experience to tourists to have direct contact with the creation or utilization of certain technology, be it traditional technology or modern, as also software or hardware. The tourism attraction in Bandung city in this category are:
Traditional technology of developing Sundanese traditional musical instrument, such as
angklung and calung. The development of creative tourism is done by involving tourists
to create traditional musical instruments accompanied by craftsman. In Bandung, potential creative attraction in this category is found at Saung Angklung Mang Udjo as well as
arts and cultural community in Ujungberung.
Traditional technology of creating other art objects, such as sculpture, painting, and
crafts. The development of creative tourism is done by involving tourists to use traditional
technologies in making sculptures and paintings, accompanied by instructors who are experts in these fields. In Bandung, potential creative attraction in this category can be
found at the Nu Art Gallery, Sunaryo Gallery, Barli Gallery and Museum.
Culinary art such as recipes and basic techniques of making Bandung unique food. Creative tourism is developed by providing experiences to tourists to produce distinctive culinary. In Bandung, potential creative attraction in this category can be found at culinary
center of Bandung, such as Batagor Riri, Kartika Sari with its banana bolen, Amanda with
its steamed brownies, and Mie Kocok H. Dadeng.
Science technologies, such as the manufacture of robots, making fertilizer, and construction of buildings. Creative tourism is developed by providing experiences to tourists to
produce a scientific technology that can be used in their home. Potential creative attraction is included in this category can be developed in Bandung at universities such as ITB,
Padjadjaran University, UPI, UNISBA, UNIKOM and etc.
2. Creative tourism based on science, the creative tourism activity that gives knowledge
on certain information that become their desire or tourism concentration and gives oppor-

tunity to tourists to explore their knowledge. The tourism attraction in Bandung City include:

Exploration of specific knowledge with practical work, such as experiments in

science, simulating the formation of clouds and rain. Creative tourism is developed by
providing knowledge through simulated experience in a particular field of knowledge.
Potential creative tourist attraction in this category can be found in smoe high schools,
colleges, Geology Museum, Sri Baduga Museum.

Bandung city urbanscape, gives opportunity for tourists to create the urbanscape of
Bandung can be a potential of creative tourism development for a special segment.

3. Creative tourism based on art, which is tourism that gives knowledge and experience to
tourists about art and also explores the art abilities that tourists have. The main attraction
in this category for Bandung city are:

Learning traditional and modern art in Bandung, such as learning to play the
Angklung, a traditional Sundanese dance, Benjang, and study music at the studio. The
development of creative tourism is done by giving a short course of art to tourists until they can play it. Creative potential tourist attraction has been developed at Saung
Angklung Mang Udjo, Kampung Manglayang, and others can be found in the Gallery
Barli, Harry Rusli House Music, Studio Music Elfas, Purwacaraka Studio, Sekolah
Tinggi Seni Indonesia in Bandung.

Creative wall, Bandung city provides space for tourists to deveop their creative potential in providing walls that can be painted or made into other creations. This will
give experience for tourists, and strengthened Bandung landmark as creative city.

The Bandung creative city potential is not limited as an attraction for tourists, but there are
several tourism potential, such as creative tourism in sports, such as riding heritage bikes, off
road, and etc.

5. SUMMARY
Creative tourism is the strategy in developing Bandung city tourism for the future. With the
main characteristic that consist of creative tourists and the activity contain participatory learning in consuming the tourism product together with the local community as the instructor or
produces, the creative tourism can give experience and knowledge with more quality to Ban-

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dung city tourists. The tourists not only walk and shop, but can also produce batik or culinary
product so their tourism journey have added value in developing themselves. The creative industry is the resources needed for Bandung to develop its creative tourism as the main attraction for tourist. The Creative industry have the potential to become tourism resources thus
developing creative tourism in Bandung city. The industry is supported by Bandung city creative community that always create creative product. The limitation of this study is that it uses
the Creative Tourism literature that has been developed based on North American and European examples . Despite shared characteristics with many Western cities, the fundamental political, economic, and cultural environment that develop creative tourism is unique to Bandung. The resources based view approach is useful to develop the citys strategy for tourism
development. However, the creative tourism have been depicted from other countries so it is
important to acknowledge these differences and adapt specific approach and strategy accordingly.

7. REFERENCE

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Environment, 2009
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Richard, G. and Wilson, J. (2007). Tourism, Creativity, and Development. Oxon: Routledge.
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