What is a Global Capability Center (GCC)?

A Global Capability Center (GCC) is a centralized offshore unit established by an organization to deliver strategic services such as IT, engineering, analytics, finance, and R&D to support global operations.

What is an Offshore Development Center (ODC)?

An Offshore Development Center (ODC) is a dedicated team located in a different country that focuses primarily on software development, application maintenance, and technology support for a client.

What services are commonly delivered through a GCC?

GCCs provide services such as IT operations, product engineering, data analytics, cybersecurity, finance and accounting, HR services, and research and development.

What are the key benefits of setting up a GCC?

Key benefits include cost optimization, access to global talent, operational scalability, faster innovation, improved control, and long-term strategic value creation.

Which industries commonly use GCCs and ODCs?

Industries such as technology, banking and financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, telecom, and automotive commonly leverage GCCs and ODCs.

What locations are popular for setting up GCCs and ODCs?

Popular locations include India, Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Philippines due to strong talent pools and cost advantages.

How long does it take to set up a GCC or ODC?

The setup timeline can range from a few weeks to several months, depending on factors such as location, scale, infrastructure requirements, and governance model.

Is a GCC or an ODC better for long-term growth?

A GCC is generally better for long-term strategic growth and innovation, while an ODC is ideal for rapid execution, flexibility, and short- to medium-term technology needs.

How do GCCs and ODCs help with cost optimization?

They reduce costs by leveraging lower labor expenses, optimizing resource utilization, minimizing infrastructure investments, and enabling round-the-clock development through time-zone advantages.

How is data security and IP protection handled in GCCs and ODCs?

Data security is ensured through strict compliance frameworks, secure infrastructure, access controls, legal agreements, and adherence to international standards such as ISO, SOC, and GDPR.

Costco Opens First GCC in India

When Costco, the second-largest retailer in the world by sales, decides to locate its first Global Capability Centre (GCC) in India, this is a decision that is much more practical than symbolic. The new GCC in Hyderabad announced in July 2025 is projected to begin with approximately 1,000 employees and increase over time, which is an indication of the accelerating direction: global retailers are moving innovation, analytics and engineering work offshore to the mature GCC ecosystem in India.

India is already the leader of GCC destination. The GCC market already contributed about US$64-65 billion in FY2024 and has more than 1900 centres, a base that industry projections project will rise to US$100+ billion by 2030. This expansion is enabled by the growing technology exports and robust IT services of India that are expected to reach the USG 200+ billion threshold, driving greater, highly valued GCC activity in AI, cloud, analytics and product engineering.

Why is the GCC of Costco Important?

It is not just a cost game but an investment in capabilities to support the global retail strategy that Costco has a cost capability centre. Expect the GCC to prioritise:

E-commerce and membership technology and product engineering.
Inventory optimisation and customer insight data analytics.
Vendor/sourcing analytics and supply-chain digitalisation.
Global-scale finance, compliance and shared services.

India has 3 tangible benefits economically, namely, a vast and expanding pool of engineering talent, a significant operating-cost advantage as compared to North America, and a progressive policy regime that facilitates services exportation (the newest tax clarifications reinforce the export status of IT and GCC work). All this will collectively reduce the total cost of ownership and shorten the time-to-market of new digital capabilities in retail.

Effect on the India GCC Ecosystem

The GCC of Costco will contribute to a virtuous circle. New centres bring in specialist vendors, catalyse local start-up tie-ups (retail-tech, supply-chain SaaS, AI) and generate high-value roles that change the GCC profile of India from delivery to focused innovation. In the case of Hyderabad in particular, which is already an emerging GCC centre, the centre will drive more local recruitment, campus leasing and collaboration with universities to obtain specialised talent.

Future Operational Roadmap

First production (Year 0-1): Core product, data and finance teams commence (about 1,000 hires).
Capability scaling (Years 1-3): Internationalisation into AI-based merchandising, international analytics and vendor risk systems.
Integration into ecosystem (Year 3+): R&D partnerships with Indian startups, generative AI centres of excellence, and potential tier-2 cities.

GCCs in India

Company	India GCC Focus	Early Impact
Walmart	Data, AI, supply chain	Global tech backbone
Target	Product engineering, digital ops	Faster product cycles
Tesco	Analytics, supply chain	Cost & process efficiency
Costco (2025)	Tech, analytics, supply chain, finance	1,000 initial hires; innovation-led GCC.

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Expanding Effects On the International Expansion Approach

The relocation of Costco strengthens a more general trend: multinational retailers pay more and more attention to India GCCs as sources of digital transformation instead of offshore cost centres. The takeaway for companies with an international expansion strategy is simple: An offshore capability centre in India can help them hasten product development, centralise high-value analytics, and offer scalable shared services to enhance global competitiveness.

Conclusion

The GCC of Costco in India is a catalytic event for the India GCC ecosystem as well as the global retail strategy. It highlights the transformation of India as an offshore capability centre with a combination of scale, domain knowledge and innovation pace. Predict that, in the next few years, there will be not only incremental creation of jobs but also a qualitative change. GCCs will provide differentiated products and AI-driven product differentiation to international companies. Organisations intending to grow internationally or considering offshore capability center needs not look at India as a cost-out destination in isolation but as a partner in the ability building.

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frequently asked questions (FAQs)

What is the Global Delivery Centre (GDC)?

A GDC refers to a single-minded offshore deployment, which provides proficient business, technology and operational services to corporate bodies on a global basis.

What are the most suitable industries with the help of GDCs in India?

BFSI, IT services, healthcare, telecom, retail, manufacturing, and other upcoming technologies, including AI and blockchain.

What can GDCs in India do along with offering cost and labour benefits?

They do not only target cost savings but now aim at innovation, automation, R&D, digital transformation, and high-value consulting.

How are GDCs relevant to digital transformation?

They design and create cloud, artificial intelligence, analytics, cloud security, and process automation.

What talents do the GDCs of India add?

A large supply of STEM graduates, multilingual workers and niche skills in AI, ML, cloud, and analytics.

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Aditi

Aditi, with a strong background in forensic science and biotechnology, brings an innovative scientific perspective to her work. Her expertise spans research, analytics, and strategic advisory in consulting and GCC environments. She has published numerous research papers and articles. A versatile writer in both technical and creative domains, Aditi excels at translating complex subjects into compelling insights. Which she aligns seamlessly with consulting, advisory domain, and GCC operations. Her ability to bridge science, business, and storytelling positions her as a strategic thinker who can drive data-informed decision-making.