AsianFin -- Starbucks has attracted significant interest in the potential sale of a stake in its China business, CEO Brian Niccol told the Financial Times in an interview published Wednesday, as the U.S. coffee chain seeks to reignite growth in its second-largest market.

“The good news is we’ve got a lot of interest — a lot of interest,” Niccol said.

“People see the value of the Starbucks brand. They see the coffee category is growing. I think they’d love to be partnering up with us in figuring out how we take this from 8,000 to 20,000 [stores],” he added.

Private equity firms including KKR & Co., FountainVest Partners, and PAG have shown interest in acquiring a stake in the China operations, according to a Reuters report in February.