Singapore fashion label Raoul has inked a franchise deal with Chalhoub Group to expand into the Middle East market.

The agreement will see nine standalone Raoul stores open by 2017, the first two in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain next year.

The latest franchise, the third this year, will bring the number of stores in the Raoul‘s franchise network in the Middle East, China and Sri Lanka, to 37 over the next five years.

The deal with Chalhoub Group followed one with Chongqing-based Budy (Chongqing) Import & Export Trading Co in May, to open 27 stores in key cities in China, including Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu by 2017.

Two months later, Raoul’s parent company FJ Benjamin also signed a franchise agreement with Sri Lankan-based White Lotus Fashions to open the first standalone Raoul store in Colombo in December 2013.

Raoul was created by Douglas and Odile Benjamin in 2002 to fill a niche by providing shirts for men. It later branched out to womenswear, accessories and leather goods, which now account for more than half of its sales.

“We are confident that with Chalhoub Group’s access to talent and retail infrastructure built up over five decades, they will be able to help FJ Benjamin grow the Raoul brand very quickly in one of the top 10 markets globally for luxury goods,” said FJ Benjamin COO Douglas Benjamin.