U.S. coffee chain Starbucks Corp (Nasdaq:SBUX) will launch its first coffee shop in India by the end of October with Tata Global Beverages, John Culver, president, China and Asia Pacific, said Friday.

Tata Starbucks Limited, the 50/50 joint venture between Starbucks Coffee Company and Tata Global Beverages Limited, will open the their first store in India in the Horniman Circle area of Mumbai by the end of October 2012.

“We are delighted to be able to announce our progress toward opening our first store in India and to introduce locally sourced espresso,” the company said in a statement.

The store will also have espresso sourced and roasted locally from India through the coffee sourcing and roasting agreement with Tata Coffee Limited.

“Being able to use the highest quality espresso, sourced and roasted in India, is an important part of delivering a locally relevant experience to our customers in the market,” said Culver.

“This is the first step Starbucks and Tata Coffee Limited are taking toward developing and improving the profile of Indian-grown arabica coffees around the world by elevating the stature of Indian coffee, as well as improving the quality of coffee through sustainable practices,” he added.

Starbucks had initially planned to launch its coffee stores in India by mid-2011 but was delaying it citing difficulties in acquiring real estate and the high land prices. In January, it announced the opening of 50 cafes in India with an investment of Rs. 4 billion, in 2012.

The company announced the appointment of Avani Saglani Davda as its CEO with immediate effect.

China India