Barista Lavazza and Penguin Books India brew a strategic alliance

Coffee lovers to get a free read as they enjoy their sip.

Cafe chain major Barista Lavazza has tied knots with the country' leading English language publisher Penguin Books in a specific deal where the cafe chain will provide space to the publishing company for its high profile book launches and in return will bring the enriching collection of Penguin Books for free reading to its patrons.

R Shivashankar, director, South Asia, Barista Lavazza, says, "This relationship will draw the best from both the worlds for our patrons. It will create and provide a platform to both our existing and potential customers, by giving them the opportunity to enjoy through two binding forces - literature and coffee. Such an association has never been thought of before and we are confident that the synergies drawn due to this will be enjoyed and remembered by our guests."

The book launches will take place at select Barista Lavazza cafes across the country.

The deal begins with the launch of Shobha De's much anticipated book Sethji that will be followed by interactions with different authors and greeting sessions.

Barista Lavazza will also launch a new flavour of coffee, titled the Sethji Coffee, to promote the book. The coffee brand will be present at leading Barista Lavazza stores for two months.

Hemali Sodhi, vice-president, Penguin Books India, says, "Coffee and books always go well together, and we're looking forward to bringing some great books and some wonderful authors to Barista as part of this initiative."

As a part of this deal, Barista Lavazza will start a Book Club at its cafes, wherein customers can enjoy book reading sessions while sipping their favourite Italian coffee.

Another pioneering initiative under this endeavour will be 'Emerging Writers Awards', wherein Barista Lavazza will invite entries from people with literary interests. Penguin will judge the entries and the winner will be awarded by both the partners.

Barista was established in February 2000 to recreate the ambience and experience of the typical Italian neighbourhood Espresso Bars in India. It got the name Barista Lavazza after Lavazza bought it in 2007. It has over 180 cafes in India.

Penguin India began publishing in October 1987 with six books and as of today, it publishes 250 titles every year and has an active backlist of more than 3,000 titles. The publishing company is celebrating its 25th year in 2012.