Coimbatore – from a textile hub to tech hub

• The second-largest city of Tamil Nadu is all set to host the most prosperous business of the day – technology.
• After the pandemic, most IT employees have been working from home and have been reluctant to come back to work, after they have shifted base to their hometowns.
• IT companies have started moving closer to talent, most of which resides away from large cities.
• As per a report by Naukri.com, Coimbatore showed the maximum year-on-year growth of 60% in hiring across all non-metro cities in June this year.

A year after Coimbatore shifted hands from Tipu Sultan to the British, a failed coffee merchant Robert Stanes kickstarted its long journey of industrialization. Apart from motor works and other foundries, he also helped establish textile mills. By the time the Bombay textile boom had started to wane, this Southern city on the other end of the country picked up – and prospered as road and rail connectivity improved.

A similar revolution seems to be afoot in this second largest city of Tamil Nadu, and is all set to host the most prosperous business of the day – technology. TCS already has a small office in the city. Infosys and IBM’s ‘future of work’ strategies are making them set-up offices in tier-2 cities and on the top of these lists is Coimbatore.

Tech Mahindra however has already inaugurated its new campus there, which it hopes will drive business growth in unexplored markets.

“The campus will focus on developing new technology stack pertaining to intelligent automation, artificial intelligence/robotic process automation, full-stack development, customer experience (CX), and other next-gen application development and management skills (ADMS) skills,” Harshvendra Soin, global chief people officer and head of marketing at Tech Mahindra told Business Insider India.

IT companies are going where talent is

After the pandemic, most IT employees have been working from home and have been reluctant to come back to work, after they have shifted base to their hometowns. Rental expenses and other increased living expenses have been holding them back from returning to cities.

IT companies have started moving closer to talent, most of which resides away from large cities.

“Through this new campus, we will aim to provide growth opportunities and make the most of the immense potential held by several individuals residing in Coimbatore,” Soin said. Most such people graduated from top engineering colleges in and around the city like Coimbatore Institute of Technology (CIT), GCT Coimbatore and many more – providing them with ready-made talent.

After the city of Chennai has expanded to its zenith with various IT offices, the state government too is keen on promoting Coimbatore to tech companies.

On July 4, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin inaugurated the Rathinam Business and IT Park in Coimbatore which will be home to at least 20 companies – and aims to create over 3,500 job opportunities both directly and indirectly.

Better than metros and then some more

This city has already been creating jobs and is the best amongst all non-metros. As per a report by Naukri.com, Coimbatore showed the maximum year-on-year growth of 60% in hiring across all non-metro cities in June this year. The overall hiring in tier 2 and 3 cities is expected to rise in the coming months.

Coimbatore is also high on livability index and has been beating Chennai, Bengaluru, Gurgaon and all other tech hubs for years now. Livability index is calculated on the basis of the cost of living, pollution, traffic, quality of living etc.

As per reports, cost of living in Coimbatore is around 22% less than Gurgaon and as many as 65% techies would rather work at tier-2 and tier-3 towns rather than a metro. Moreover, Coimbatore city is well-known for its diverse offerings to tourists and residents alike with malls and temples and history that dates back to none other than Romans.

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