Private cos CCD, Afoozo bid for running Indian Coffee Houses

New Delhi: The government-run Coffee Board said Tuesday private players Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) and Afoozo have bid for running its 15 Indian Coffee Houses (ICHs) across the country under a franchise agreement.

The iconic Indian Coffee House has a rich history of eight decades with the first outlet been established in 1936.

"Not everyone can afford to go to Starbucks everyday. Where is the place where you and I can go to have coffee where I don't have to pay Rs 200 for a cup of coffee.

"We are in the process of revamping India Coffee Houses. We will sell coffee at Rs 30 a cup," Coffee Board CEO and Secretary Srivatsa Krishna said.

Stating that the IHCs are in a "very bad shape", Krishna said that the outlets will now be revamped on the likes of India Habitat Centre and India International Centre located in the national capital.

"We have invited bids. CCD and Mumbai-based food company Afoozo have come forward. We will give our outlets for one time fee per annum. The licence will be given for a period of three year. The price of coffee and other items will be fixed by the Board," he said.

No pre-cooked food items will be sold. "We will ask our franchise partner to make fresh as per the recipe given by the board."

In Delhi, the ICHs are located in Parliament House, North and South block, Udyog Bhavan and JNU campus. One outlet each are located in Bengalure, Kolkata, Mumbai and Thirumala (in Andhra Pradesh) among others places.

Krishna said the revamp of ICHs and opening of new outlets will boost coffee consumption and help growers get better returns.

Among other initiatives to promote coffee consumption, the Board has tied up with e-commerce platforms Snapdeal, Flipkart and Amazon India to have 'specialised coffee stores'.

The board also announced many digital interventions to support entire stakeholders from growers to exporters to retailers in the coffee sector. The move is aimed to raise crops yields and double farmers' income.