'Coffee is beyond a beverage, a form of self-expression'

As corporate culture and entrepreneurship are booming in India, sipping coffee and working out of a cafe is becoming an essential part of the new generation's lifestyle and becoming a form of self-expression, says a Starbucks official.

Veetika Deoras, a coffee connoisseur and Chief Marketing Officer, Marketing at Tata Starbucks, believes that with more customised coffee and experiential service the beverage has found a place in the lifestyle of a common global citizen.

India is mostly considered a tea drinking nation. Apart from the south Indian filter coffee, the acceptance towards other variants has happened only in the past few years.

Deoras told IANS: "Coffee is beyond a beverage. It is a form of self-expression. I think coffee is one of the beverages that allows you to spend your 'me time' and get connected to people. Coffee is something that you drink when you want to boost your mind under work pressure, and when you want to feel stress-free and relax."

That is also the reason why a lot of cafes are offering a "third place" experience.

Explaining the idea, she said: "We spend most of our time in two places -- our home and our workplace or office. Coffee shops that offer a friendly atmosphere are becoming the third place where people are spending a lot of time apart from home and office. That is how these coffee shops are becoming the 'third place' in the lifestyle of the urban population."

Starbucks hosted a week-long initiative 'Brewober' to celebrate the International Coffee Week, which was on October 1. They offered seven varieties of coffee from across the world.

Deoras said such engagement is making a difference and attracting youngsters to embrace the coffee culture.

--IANS

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