# Starbucks India to resume aggressive store expansion 2026-08-24T08:36:29+00:00 | Business & Economy | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Starbucks India is set to resume aggressive store expansion after nearly two years of recalibrating its business model amid a slowdown in discretionary spending, Tata Consumer Products MD and CEO Sunil D'Souza said. The company, operated through a 50:50 joint venture between TCPL and Starbucks Corporation, currently runs about 500 cafes across 80 cities. D'Souza told PTI that the last 18-24 months were used to recalibrate store size, capital expenditure per outlet and beverage pricing. He noted that Tata Starbucks has now reported four successive quarters of same-store sales growth, with acceleration visible. The company had earlier targeted opening 100 stores annually but moderated expansion due to softer demand in the QSR segment. The renewed push will combine new store additions with greater density in existing cities, aiming for more than five stores per city to achieve operational efficiencies. TCPL Chairman N Chandrasekaran has articulated a longer-term ambition for Starbucks India to eventually match the chain's scale in China, which has around 8,000 stores. Tata Starbucks reported 11% revenue growth in the June quarter and narrowed its net loss to Rs 98.95 crore in FY26. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Starbucks entered India in 2012 and has faced persistent profitability challenges, with cumulative losses exceeding Rs 1,200 crore before this improvement. The focus on density over city count is a strategic shift: operating fewer than five stores in a city is inefficient for supply chain and kitchen logistics. The China comparison is telling: 8,000 stores there versus 500 here suggests India is still a fledgling market. With same-store sales growth now consistent for four quarters, the next signal to watch is whether the JV can turn net profitable in FY27. ## Coverage - retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com Straightforward business reporting based on PTI interview, no slant or editorialising. This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: QSR, Starbucks, Sunil D'Souza, Tata Consumer Products, Tata Starbucks Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/starbucks-india-to-resume-aggressive-store-expansion/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/starbucks-india-to-resume-aggressive-store-expansion/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/