Korkeasaari is the most reputable in the tourism and restaurant industry

T-Media’s Reputation&Trust survey of the tourism and restaurant industry examined Finns’ views and perceptions of organizations in the sector as well as the industry as a whole. Korkeasaari Zoo is the most reputable organization among those surveyed—Heureka Science Center and Sokos Hotels were ranked second and third, respectively.

The reputation of organizations in the tourism and restaurant industry was surveyed in April–May 2024, with a total of 2,453 Finns responding to the survey.

Reputational perceptions have a significant impact on people’s behavior toward businesses in the tourism and restaurant industry. Overall, the industry’s reputation has remained at a moderate level.

Reputation&Trust the Travel and Hospitality Industry. The survey examines the industry’s reputation among Finns in 2024. The figure in the graph represents the average of the ratings received across the eight sub-areas of reputation. Reputation&Trust, reputation is rated on a scale of 1 to 5.

“The COVID-19 pandemic initially gave the industry’s reputation a positive boost, as organizations succeeded in meeting people’s expectations under exceptional circumstances. Since then, public perception and support for the industry have declined steadily, but now that decline appears to have bottomed out and has even improved slightly. In particular, people’s perceptions of whether organizations are capable of offering products and services that are worth their price have taken a step in the right direction over the past year,” says Kaisa Laurila, an expert at T-Media.

The strengths of the tourism and restaurant sector lie in its products and services, its commitment to sustainability, and its innovations. The sector continues to receive the lowest ratings for its economic performance and employer image.

“Further developing their employer brand and social responsibility—and communicating these efforts—would be highly beneficial for organizations in the sector, as our research shows that perception currently has a very strong influence on people’s behavior and trust in organizations,” Laurila says.

The most reputable organization in the tourism and restaurant industry is Korkeasaari Zoo

Reputation&Trust of the tourism and restaurant industry examined the reputation of a total of 21 organizations among Finns. Of the top three organizations, Korkeasaari had a reputation score of 3.91, Heureka 3.89, and Sokos Hotels 3.77.

Reputation&Trust, a reputation score on a scale of 1 to 5 is calculated for each organization.

“From the study, we can conclude that people have high expectations of our relationship. It’s great to have research-backed evidence that we’re able to meet those expectations. Reputation is built in every encounter and every message, whether it happens face-to-face, over the phone, on social media, through the media, or even by watching our work at the zoo,” says Sanna Hellström, CEO of Korkeasaari.

This is how we conducted the study

The results are based on Reputation&Trust of the tourism and restaurant industry conducted in April–May 2024, which examined the reputation of organizations in the sector operating in Finland among the Finnish public.

Organizations were evaluated using T-Media’s Reputation&Trust, in which an organization’s reputation score is calculated as the average of eight different categories. The areas are corporate governance, finance, leadership, innovation, interaction, products & services, workplace, and responsibility. The study used a five-point rating scale (1–5).

A total of 2,453 Finns participated in the study.

The study’s target group consisted of Finns aged 15–65 nationwide (excluding the Åland Islands). The sample was weighted to be representative of the population by gender, age, and region of residence.