Starbucks Corp may bring a modified version of its education assistance programme to India, in a move that could help retain local talent while saving on hiring and training costs.
The world’s largest coffee chain, which operates in India as a 50:50 joint venture with Tata Global Beverages, recently announced that it would provide tuition reimbursement and financial aid to the company’s U.S employees through a partnership with Arizona State University.
In countries like China, for instance, the company has opened a corporate university that offers training modules on retail operations while also collaborating with academic institutions.
“There are several different avatars of that programme. We are definitely working to explore the same model here. But there are differences of course…in India, the aspect of vocational training is also important,” Avani Davda, CEO, Tata Starbucks Ltd., told this correspondent on Wednesday.
Ms. Davda, however, declined to divulge any details regarding how the programme would be implemented or any timeline on when it would be rolled out. The company, which opened its 50 store in India and its first store in Chennai on Wednesday, currently has 1,000 employees, who are referred to as ‘partners’, in the country.
When asked whether Starbucks viewed coffee houses such as Saravana Bhavan or Adyar Ananda Bhavan, which sell the highly popular filter coffee, as direct competition, Ms. Davda pointed out that Starbucks was not here to “intimidate” anybody.
“I respect their offering. [We are] not here to head on compete with them. I think there are differences. In the home, you want filter coffee. When you step outside, you may or may not want it. I don’t see a mother and daughter or a group of friends spending over an hour on coffee in those restaurants,” she said.
