Starbucks opens store in Bangalore

World's largest coffee chain Starbucks opened its flagship store in this tech hub with its joint venture partner Tata Global Beverages to serve its aromatic beverages.

"By unveiling our first store in Bangalore and 30th in the country, we are extending our global experience to more customers in India as part of our commitment to expand across the country," Starbucks' China and Asia-Pacific regions president John Culver told reporters on the occasion.

Located in the city's upscale suburb, the 3,000 square feet store has been designed to showcase the rich coffer heritage in the region and the tradition of the city.

Incidentally, Karnataka is the largest coffee producer in the country, accounting for about 80 percent of production.

"We plan to open two more stores in other suburbs of the city by year-end to reach out to more customers and deliver high quality Arabica coffee, handcrafted beverages made by baristas with food offerings," said Tata Starbucks chief executive Avani Davda.

The company had opened 29 stores across the country, including Mumbai, Pune and the National Capital Region (NCR) since its entry into India in October 2012.

"In addition to our beverage portfolio, we will serve a wide range of signature espresso-based beverages and our popular Ready Brew to our customers walking into the store," Davda said.

The store will offer a range of Starbucks merchandise and free Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) for customers to enjoy a unique coffee house experience that the chain is known the world over.

"We will also offer a strong mix of international favorites and specially designed food offerings to reflect local flavors," Davda added.

As a premier roaster and retailer of specialty coffee, the US-based 42-year-old Starbucks Corporation operates about 17,000 stores the world over by sourcing high quality Arabica beans from producing countries like India, Brazil, Columbia and Costa Rica.

The $1.5-billion Tata Global Beverages of the Tata group is also the world's second largest tea firm, with beverage brands such as Tata Tea, Tetley, Eight O' Clock Coffee and Himalayan mineral water.