Starbucks comes to Hyd

Hyderabad: Yet another global brand descended on the City of Pearls on Tuesday with Starbucks, an internationally-renowned coffee major, opening its maiden shop in the upscale Jubilee Hills locality.

This is the 58th outlet in India for the Tata Starbucks Limited, the equal joint venture of Nasdaq-listed Starbucks Coffee Company and India’s Tata Global Beverages Limited. And Hyderabad is the sixth city in the country to get the premium coffee brand after Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Bangalore and Chennai.

“We have launched our 58th store and expanded to six cities within two years of the Starbucks’ foray into India. It is a phenomenal performance. We will soon open another store in Hyderabad at Forum Mall,” Avani Davda, CEO, Tata Starbucks Limited, told media here after inaugurating the new store.

She further said that Tata Starbucks had opened eight new stores in the past 10 weeks and that demonstrated its long-term commitment to the Indian market.

Pointing out that India would become one of the strongest markets for Starbucks whose operations spread across 60 countries; she said the joint venture would also focus on smaller cities in the years to come. "We have over 50 cities are on our radar but we are now trying to understand what unique we can offer to these cities,” she said.

In tune with Starbucks’ global practice, the new store here is designed in such a way that it embraces the diverse history and rich culture of the city. Artistic Nizam jewellery designs layered with metallics, stringing of pearls and hexagonal shapes are weaved in throughout the store. “The flagship store promises to create a warm and welcoming destination for the customers of Hyderabad to connect over coffee away from the office or home,” she explained.