Andhra’s Araku Coffee in Manhattan Soon, Announces Anand Mahindra

Responding to a comment on a photo taken in snow-covered New York on Tuesday, where a user noted that Starbucks’ essential coffee cup was missing from his hand, Mahindra said he was more than happy to replace Starbucks. He also dropped a hint that the first Araku Café could open in midtown Manhattan in New York this summer, where he promised to post a selfie with an Araku mug in hand.

Chandrababu Naidu has long emphasized the importance of providing global recognition to Araku. The Andhra Pradesh government is in talks with public and private sector organizations to promote tribal and forest-based products, especially Araku Coffee. Plans include retail halls with Araku kiosks across India, a vision Naidu highlighted on World Tribal Day last year.

Araku Coffee, grown on 2.58 lakh acres in 11 mandals of Paderu town in Visakhapatnam, provides livelihood to tribal communities. Its global journey has already begun with a showcase at the World Economic Forum in Davos, highlighting Andhra Pradesh’s rich coffee heritage. Reports also suggest that the state government has signed an MoU with Tata Consumer Products to brand organic coffee for larger domestic and international markets and Starbucks may even include Araku Coffee in its menu.

Anand Mahindra is the Chairman of Naandi Foundation, which is transforming the lives of tribal farmers by encouraging them to grow high-quality coffee through Arakunomics and Girijan Cooperative Corporation (GCC). In order to make Araku Coffee a global brand, two stores under the name Araku Cafe were opened in the Marais region of France and in the Pantheon in Paris. It also has outlets operating in Bengaluru and Mumbai. Last year, GCC’s Araku Coffee outlets were also opened in Andhra Pradesh Assembly building and Parliament building.

Now Anand Mahindra’s announcement of the first Araku Café in Manhattan has sparked a debate about the Indian coffee brand’s entry into the US market.