India can be in top 5 mkts for Costa Coffee in 5 yrs: Philippe Schaillee

The Indian consumer is starting to shift from tea to coffee and then increasingly moving to premium coffee, he added

The Indian market, currently among the top 10 for coffee chain Costa Coffee, has the potential to climb into the top five in the next five years, according to its Global Chief Executive Officer Philippe Schaillee.

 

“We believe that with our current growth rates, we can get India into the top five. That’s an aspiration we’re going to pursue,” Schaillee said at a media roundtable.

 

He explained that India is among the top 20 coffee markets globally and is seeing double-digit growth — growth he expects to accelerate as Indian consumers increase their overall beverage consumption.

 

“The Indian consumer is starting to shift from tea to coffee and is increasingly moving towards premium coffee,” he added.

 

Costa Coffee, which marks its 20th year in India, has a presence in 50 countries. In India, it operates more than 200 outlets across 58 cities and is adding 50 new outlets annually.

 

On expansion, Schaillee said the company would continue to leverage the right mix of retail and hospitality to sustain growth.

 

Costa Coffee operates in India through a partnership with Devyani International. “In India, we’ve worked with our long-standing franchise partner, Devyani. We see Devyani as one of the role models in our global franchise portfolio. They are a true strategic partner, constantly thinking about future growth.”

 

On successful locations, Schaillee said, “We’ve seen strong success opening stores in airports. We’ve also seen success in large office campuses, where there’s a high concentration of specialty coffee consumers. We’ve entered premium healthcare campuses and selectively penetrated high streets and shopping malls to reach a broader population.”

 

He added, “We want to be more selective in how we penetrate segments.”

 

Speaking about the consumers driving growth, Schaillee noted that Generation Z views specialty coffee as having a kind of badge value.

 

On competition, he said it helps raise awareness. As for acquisitions, he said, “We’re not interested in inorganic opportunities — purchasing another coffee brand and trying to manage it as a portfolio. Converting into the Costa brand usually isn’t a successful model.”

 

The ongoing tariff war also doesn’t worry the company. “The impact of tariffs on the coffee retail segment isn’t going to be that significant. There may be some impact on green coffee from certain regions, but since we don’t depend heavily on imports for the US market, it won’t affect us much. In India, most of our products are locally sourced across the country.”