Pantaloon to foray into coffee retailing

Pantaloon Retail India Limited has signed a master franchisee agreement with the second largest coffee retailer chain of the US, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. The deal has been signed by a Pantaloon group company, Blue Foods.
The move will enable the Pantaloon group to open a chain of upmarket coffee shops across India. Pantaloon inked the association with Coffee Bean after the Foreign Investment Promotion Board rejected the entry of the world’s largest coffee retailer Starbucks in India on the grounds that its equity structure was ambiguous. Pantaloon had earlier planned to venture into coffee retailing in India in association with the Starbucks chain.
Blue Foods managing director Sunil Kapoor said, "The Coffee Bean outlets located in foreign countries feature a variety of fresh roasted coffees, speciality teas, blended ice drinks and baked goods. We plan to customise this portfolio to suit to Indian tastes to first open outlets in cities like Noida and Hyderabad. Thereafter, we will expand the Coffee Bean chain to other locations across the country."