Ratan Tata is one industrialist who is known for his wisdom, grace, and generosity not just in India but all over the world. Every now and then we come across some stories related to the industrialist that is both moving and motivating.
One such instance happened in 2012, where according to the Starbucks CEO, he was moved to tears by Ratan Tata‘s speech.
Starbucks‘ CEO, Howard Schultz, expressed his admiration for Tata in a book titled “Reimagining India: Unlocking the Potential of Asia’s Next Superpower”. In the book, Schultz has shared how he was moved by the business icon’s words during the launch of the coffee chain’s flagship store in Mumbai in the year 2012.
Schultz recalls that while describing Starbucks‘ India launch and Tata‘s remarks at the celebrations later to a gathering of his company officials in the US, he even began to cry and was overpowered by emotion.
In Schultz words,
A few weeks after returning from the opening of our Mumbai store, we held one of our big open forum meetings where we get the entire company together. And as I tried to describe that moment for everyone, something came over me. I started to cry. It just hit me emotionally.
He then added that he could sit and listen to Ratan Tata for days on end. Schultz said that he feels that Tata has so much wisdom and insight not only about India but about the world.
The book which was published in 2013, is a compilation of over 60 essays on India’s challenges and opportunities. It is written by CEOs, academicians, economists, and historians, including Wipro chief Azim Premji, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and India‘s chess legend Viswanathan Anand.
It is worth mentioning that Starbucks was brought to India Tata Global Beverages Ltd. In 2012, these two companies announced a joint venture of 50% each and TGBL now owns and operates Starbucks stores in India.
