US-based Duck Donuts is on the hunt for master franchisees to take on individual states in Australia.

The franchise chain has just signed its first deal in Asia, with a Thailand operation set for a September launch, and is now looking to expand into Australia.

Duck Donuts globally has about 140 units across six countries, and is in 23 US states.

Marcel Portmann, responsible for the brand’s global franchise development, told Inside Franchise Business Executive at the recent Melbourne Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo, master franchisees will need to commit to developing five stores before sub-franchising their region.

“We’re looking for people who have or had existing operations experience in a complementary brand,” he said.

There is the potential to co-brand with complementary businesses like coffee outlets, he added.

Portmann said the brand has a point of difference in the marketplace. The donut is not yeast but a vanilla cake base, made fresh to order on site, and cooked in a ‘mini doughnut factory’ in front of the customer before being dipped in the chosen topping, creating a sense of theatre.

Toppings can be adjusted to suit the market, for instance, fresh fruit will be on the menu in a Paris store.

Stores typically 120sqm in the US have been reconfigured to fit a more compact 60sqm footprint and the brand has also converted containers into donut stores.

The brand launched in the coastal town of Duck, in the Outer Banks area of North Carolina, in 2007, hence the name. Duck Donuts has followed through with a beach-related theme and a swimsuit-wearing duck logo.

This story originally appeared on Inside Franchise Business.