Setting the stage for the largest-ever international expansion in its corporate history, restaurant franchisor Johnny Rockets has signed a joint-venture agreement to open 100 branded restaurants in China starting next year.

The deal has the California-based company partnering with AUM Hospitality and the Parkson Retail Group Ltd. and follows previously launched successful development deals in Asian countries including the Philippines, Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia.

“Our partners have a keen sense of consumer preferences and shopping habits,” comments Johnny Rockets’ SVP of International Development, Scott Chorna. “This is an ideal partnership for Johnny Rockets entry into China,” he says, citing a “strong demand in China for American brands” and a “growing middle-class population with more spending power.”

AUM Hospitality is a multi-brand food and beverage developer and currently works as franchise partner and operator for Johnny Rockets in Malaysia. The Parkson Retail Group is a member of a conglomerate based in Malaysia and a department store operator with an extensive network of more than 130 stores, including more than 60 in the competitive China market.

Johnny Rockets’ first location in China is expected to open in early 2016, “with an initial focus on developing the brand in Parkson-owned malls and other top malls and retail areas in Shanghai and Beijing,” says Chorna. “The company’s franchise partners currently operate more than 125 restaurants outside the U.S. and the brand’s global strategy is to double that number by 2017.”