Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

With a dash of spice, Reliance and Britain's Pret bet on India's changing tastes

“We are looking at 3%-4% of India’s population … It fits right into our strategy,” Darshan Mehta, chief executive of Reliance Brands, told Reuters in an interview.

With a dash of spice, Reliance and Britain's Pret bet on India's changing tastes

British snack chain Pret will adapt its menu to local tastes when it opens in Indian cities and airports under a partnership with retail giant Reliance to try to satisfy the nation's growing appetite for upmarket refreshment.

As part of its broader plan to target the most affluent 50 million of India's 1.3 billion people, Reliance on Thursday announced a franchise deal with Pret.


The partnership has the potential to make India one of Pret's biggest markets and to challenge incumbents Starbucks SBUX.O and Coca-Cola's KO.N Costa Coffee, as well as Tim Hortons of Canada, which said in March it will launch in India this year.

For Reliance, a conglomerate that also runs the country's biggest retail chain and has partnerships with global fashion and luxury brands, the Pret deal marks its first major bet on wealthier Indians' pursuit of new food experiences.

"We are looking at 3%-4% of India's population ... It fits right into our strategy," Darshan Mehta, chief executive of Reliance Brands, told Reuters in an interview.

"Unlike Starbucks, I was looking at something that is more food-led. Starbucks is a beverage-led business," he said, adding the Indian market was big enough for competing brands to grow.

Pret A Manger - or "ready to eat" in French - opened in London in 1986 and has 550 outlets globally, including in the United States and several European countries.

Mehta said Reliance aimed to make India one of Pret's three biggest markets by 2030.

The first Indian outlet of Pret - known for organic coffee and chicken and avocado sandwiches - will open in Mumbai.

A source with direct knowledge said Pret will have 100 India outlets within five years, although Mehta declined to disclose the number targeted.

The broader food services market is predicted to grow significantly. Technopak Advisors estimates India's cafe chain market will be worth $550 million by 2025, growing 34% each year.

As disposable income rises in cities and small towns, Indians, who have traditionally been tea drinkers, are embracing western-style coffee sold in cafes and restaurants.

When launched in 2012 in partnership with the Tata Group, Starbucks' first store in India attracted long queues. It now has 268 stores in 26 cities, although it also has competition from local chains such as Blue Tokai.

Mehta sipped Blue Tokai coffee during his video interview with Reuters.

When asked about it, he said: "we've not yet launched Pret."

PANDEMIC CLOSURES AND SPICE ADJUSTMENTS

Pret CEO Pano Christou has described the India deal with Reliance as its "most ambitious global franchise partnership to date".

The chain was hard hit by the pandemic as the shift to working from home, which meant a huge drop in sales to the British office workers that had been a major market, and led it to close stores and shed jobs.

As it seeks new opportunities, Ankur Bisen, head of consumer and retail at Technopak, said closures of local cafes in India during the pandemic had created room for Pret to move in.

Bisen said Pret could pose "direct competition" to Starbucks if it successfully adapted its food to local tastes and attracted customers with stores that have room for dining.

Starbucks did not respond to a request for comment.

Like many other foreign chains, Starbucks success in India has been underpinned by a partnership with an Indian conglomerate and a combination of international flavours - Hawaiian and basil tomato sandwiches - and Indian food, such as spiced paneer.

Mehta said about 20% of Pret's offerings will be Indian-inspired.

Many of the remaining items could also be modified to Indian taste, he said. For instance, the amount of spice or tahini sauce in falafel rolls could be changed.

Apart from its partnership with Pret, Reliance also plans to open an outlet of Japanese retailer Muji's cafe and Asia's second Armani cafe. Armani and Muji are both partners of Reliance in India.

For all its ambition, Reliance is proceeding in stages, with a few Pret stores by the end of 2023, and then more from 2024 Mehta said.

"Airports are a big part of the offering," Mehta said, but Pret would also be dotted around city centres and company complexes, making up for some of the diminished British office worker market.

(Reuters)

More For You

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less
Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE is now investigating more than 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects, following years of public criticism and institutional failings in tackling child sexual exploitation.

A new report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has revealed the force has made “significant improvements” in dealing with group-based sexual abuse and related crimes.

Keep ReadingShow less