US coffee giant Starbucks will establish its first Global Capability Centre (GCC) in Chennai, India, creating around 800 technology jobs in its initial phase.
The company signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu government on September 21 for setting up the centre. The agreement was signed in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay and senior state government officials.
The Chennai facility will operate independently of Starbucks’ retail joint venture with Tata Consumer Products, which operates the company’s café business in India. Starbucks currently has around 500 cafés in the country through the partnership.
The GCC is expected to focus on high-value technology and business functions as Starbucks expands its global technology capabilities from India. Reuters reported that the centre will support areas including finance, software development and research and development, reflecting the broader shift among multinational companies towards using Indian GCCs for specialised and innovation-driven functions rather than traditional back-office support.
Starbucks Chief Technology Officer Anand Varadarajan said Chennai’s skilled technology workforce, relatively low employee attrition, infrastructure and the incentives offered by the Tamil Nadu government were among the factors behind the location decision. He also described India as an important market as Starbucks builds its technology capabilities.
The announcement comes shortly after US healthcare and pharmacy company Walgreens signed an agreement with the Tamil Nadu government to establish its first India GCC in Chennai. The Walgreens centre is expected to create more than 250 high-value jobs in its first year, with further expansion planned.
Together, the announcements underline the expanding role of Chennai in India’s GCC ecosystem. According to a 2026 Nasscom-Zinnov report cited by Reuters, GCCs in India employ more than 2.36 million people and generate nearly $100 billion in annual revenue. Chennai accounts for about 10% of the country’s GCC infrastructure.
For Starbucks, the Chennai centre represents a shift from viewing India primarily as a retail market to using the country as a base for global technology and business capabilities.