Navin Gurnaney to replace Sumitro Ghosh as Tata Starbucks CEO from Jan

Three years after taking over as chief executive officer of Tata Starbucks, Sumitro Ghosh will make way for Navin Gurnaney, who will become CEO of the company effective January 1. Gurnaney will be the third CEO of Tata Starbucks in six years. The JV first opened its store in October 2012 under Avani Davda, the youngest CEO then within the Tata group. She quit in December 2015 to make way for Ghosh in January 2016.

On Wednesday, Tata Starbucks, the 50:50 joint venture between Tata Global Beverages and Seattle-based Starbucks Corporation, said Ghosh was returning to the US to pick up a role within the Starbucks organisation. The company did not give any more details about Ghosh's new role, adding he had contributed significantly to the growth of Tata Starbucks at a time when the domestic coffee retail market has seen competition grow.

While leader Cafe Coffee Day has consolidated its position with over 1,700 stores, McCafe from McDonald's and Starbucks have steadily added stores in the last two years even as Barista has scaled down operations. In August, Coca-Cola globally acquired Costa Coffee in a $5.1-billion transaction, with plans to rejuvenate the brand here.