Booths, an upmarket grocery chain from the north of England, has decided to open its first international outpost in Malaysia. According to The Telegraph UK, the family-owned retailer chose to strike a joint venture in Malaysia instead of growing the chain’s footprint within the UK.

Dubbed the ‘Waitrose of the North,’ the company has signed an agreement with the giant Hong Kong-listed retailer Dairy Farm – which operates Cold Storage, Giant Hypermarkets, and Guardian – to sell 40 of its best-selling products, including chutneys, jams, and puddings, in 19 shops across Malaysia.

Founded in Blackpool in 1847, Booths started off as a tea shop, but soon grew to become the first supermarket chain in the vicinity. Today, the grocery chain has 28 retail stores in Northern England. Rather than being known as a mass-market retailer like Tesco, Booths has positioned itself to compete based on quality instead of just price.

Commenting on the new venture, Henry Booth, the company’s new Export and Business-to-Business Department Leader says, “I’m very happy that British products made in the northwest of England could have such a positive and enthusiastic reception on the other side of the world, and I hope that the Malaysian customers will grow to love Booths’ products as much as the customers we serve in the UK.”

At the time of writing, Booths has not released details on when and where it will open its stores in Malaysia. So, for expats from England (or perhaps even Malaysians who have lived there) – if you’ve been missing products from Booths, you’ll surely be excited to find the Booths departments in your favourite grocers soon!