Ralph Lauren names new head for its India GCC in Bengaluru
GURUGRAM, INDIA — Ralph Lauren has appointed Tathagat Varma as Vice President and Head of its India Global Capability Centre, naming the technology leader to build and scale the brand’s Bengaluru operations, the company announced.
According to a report from People Matters, Varma joins from Walmart Global Tech, where he served as Global Technology Operations Leader and previously as Vice President, Strategy and Chief of Staff. No financial terms were disclosed.
Ralph Lauren Corporation, a global premium lifestyle and apparel brand, joins a growing list of consumer goods multinationals building out technology and operational GCC footprints in Bengaluru.
Walmart tech veteran leads Ralph Lauren’s India GCC
Varma brings more than 30 years of technology leadership spanning digital transformation, cloud adoption, and AI strategy, with senior roles at Walmart Global Tech, NerdWallet, McAfee, and Huawei. He holds a Doctorate in Business Administration specializing in AI from the Indian School of Business and completed executive programs at Stanford University.
Naming an AI-credentialed, Walmart-scale technology executive to lead the GCC signals Ralph Lauren is building a genuine technology hub in Bengaluru, not a back-office services unit.
“I’m excited to start my new job as Head of Global Capability Centre, India with Ralph Lauren,” said Tathagat Varma, Vice President and Head, Global Capability Center (India), Ralph Lauren.
Bengaluru GCC expands Ralph Lauren’s offshore tech footprint
The Bengaluru GCC will operate under Varma’s mandate to build and scale Ralph Lauren’s India-based technology and operational capabilities — a role the company describes as central to its broader global organizational strategy.
Beyond his corporate career, Varma also founded Cognitive Chasm, a research-led initiative focused on AI and organizational transformation — an academic-practitioner orientation he brings alongside deep operational scale experience.
For a premium lifestyle brand like Ralph Lauren, a GCC led by an AI doctorate holder signals intent to embed technology-driven decision-making across design, supply chain, and retail operations.
The India GCC sector has grown to more than 1,700 centers employing over 1.8 million technology and business professionals, with Bengaluru remaining the dominant hub for capability-intensive GCC buildouts by multinational consumer goods, retail, and fashion companies.
Consumer goods and fashion multinationals have accelerated India GCC buildouts in recent years, competing for Bengaluru’s concentration of AI, data analytics, and engineering talent.
For Ralph Lauren, naming a VP-level GCC head with AI credentials and global technology operations experience places its India center among the more capability-forward fashion and luxury GCC buildouts in the Bengaluru market.
