Starbucks to expand presence to 2 new cities by year-end

Tata Starbucks plans to expand its footprint to two new cities by the year end, taking the total count to 10, a top company official said.

The company, a 50:50 joint venture between Tata Global Beverages and Starbucks Coffee of the US, believes that the Indian market has "tremendous opportunity" for growth as coffee consumption level is lower than the West.

"By the end of this year, we will be in 10 cities and we are very optimistic of our long-term growth in India," Starbucks Group President of International & Channels Development and Global Coffee & Tea, John Culver said.

"We are taking a long term view of the opportunity that exists here, and I believe there is a tremendous opportunity for us to continue to accelerate our growth here," Culver said in an interview to Tata group's inhouse magazine 'Tata Review'.

Tata Starbucks operates in eight cities in India, according to the latest annual report of Tata Global Beverage Ltd (TGBL).

Culver also said the company is still in its early phase of growth, and is creating a unique 'Starbucks experience'.

"In India, we are in the early days of growth. We have been in the market now for six years and recently opened our 150th store," he said.

It opened 30 stores in FY'18 and also entered a new city Chandigarh.

"Tata Starbucks, our joint venture with Starbucks, reflected a double digit topline growth 30 per cent due to growth in existing store sales coupled with expansion of stores," TGBL said in its annual report.

"Tata Starbucks kept up the momentum on expanding the store base and added 30 new stores to reach 146 stores by the end of FY 2018-19."