Why SanLucar Chose Dingdong Maicai: Interview With CEO Armin Rehberg

January 20, 2026

Jing Zang

On Jan. 14, SanLucar signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Dingdong Maicai in Shanghai, announcing deep collaboration in areas including supply chain coordination, product innovation and market promotion. This marks SanLucar’s first direct partnership with a Chinese fruit retail platform. At the event, Armin Rehberg, SanLucar’s CEO, gave an exclusive interview to Produce Report.

Founded in Spain in 1993, SanLucar is one of the world’s leading fruit companies and among the largest in Europe. With production bases in approximately 40 countries, SanLucar ensures a consistent supply of fresh produce across all 12 months of the year.

Established in 2017, Dingdong Maicai is an instant fresh food e-commerce retailer committed to high-quality products. In addition to sourcing directly from origin, the company has in recent years invested in its own farms to maintain rigorous quality control throughout the supply chain.

Displayed prominently at Dingdong Maicai’s headquarters is a statement by CEO Liang Changlin that encapsulates his philosophy on “good users and good products”: “We don’t aim to be 75 points for everyone; we aim to be 120 points for a few.” After learning the meaning behind the quote, Rehberg cheerfully posed for a photo pointing to the words on the wall, noting that SanLucar aspires to meet Dingdong Maicai’s highest standards and be its “120 points.”

Liang emphasized that the entire company should focus on serving products, building a strong ecosystem and developing high-quality offerings — an approach that SanLucar values most in its decision to partner with Dingdong Maicai.

Rehberg believes that choosing a partner is like selecting an “ideal harbor to berth a ship,” and Dingdong Maicai is SanLucar’s first harbor on the Chinese market. He noted that Dingdong Maicai stands out in the fresh e-commerce sector, with a philosophy and performance that surpass many of its peers. Rehberg believes that the time is right to expand into the Chinese market, where online business is crucial. He also emphasized that Dingdong Maicai’s focus on product quality and differentiated offerings closely aligns with SanLucar’s long-held philosophy.

Before the partnership was finalized, representatives from Dingdong Maicai conducted on-site visits to SanLucar’s farms in Chile, Peru, South Africa and Monaco. SanLucar operates over 120 fruit and vegetable varieties, spanning categories such as blueberries, strawberries, citrus, cherries, table grapes and avocados, with blueberries, strawberries and citrus as its three core products.

Rehberg highlighted SanLucar’s strong supply capabilities, noting that the company has several specialized product divisions, including stone fruit, tropical fruit, strawberries, other berries and citrus. Each division focuses on a specific category and manages its own farms, partners and related business. These divisions are all experts in their respective fields, and this specialized structure enables SanLucar to efficiently operate more than 120 fruit and vegetable products.

SanLucar places strong emphasis on health, viewing fruits and vegetables as natural expressions of vitality and well-being, and takes pride in offering produce that is natural, fresh and flavorful. Guided by this philosophy, the company has developed healthier snack options, including ice creams and smoothies made from fresh fruit. Rehberg explained that the sweetness in SanLucar’s ice creams and smoothies comes entirely from fresh fruit, rather than fruit juice, added sugars or sugar substitutes, reflecting the company’s aim to provide consumers with purer and healthier snack choices.

Consumers encountering SanLucar products are often drawn to the brand’s broad range of packaging formats and IP collaborations. SanLucar has developed a diverse portfolio of packaging solutions tailored to different consumer segments and usage occasions; even for the same fruit, multiple packaging options are available to address increasingly personalized needs. Rehberg noted that the company is committed to continuous product development and, through ongoing dialogue with consumers, actively generates new ideas, designs innovative packaging, and explores new varieties and origins.

SanLucar has maintained a long-standing partnership with Disney for many years. Through IP co-branded packaging and joint promotional activities, SanLucar has observed that secondary product placements generate 93% higher product movement. When discussing this demanding partner, Rehberg noted that IP collaboration is not merely one-way licensing but a form of two-way empowerment. SanLucar also adds value to Disney’s promotional efforts, and this win-win approach has earned the company Disney’s long-term trust. Rehberg further revealed that SanLucar has already secured the IP license for Disney’s upcoming film Hoppers and that the two parties will continue to collaborate on related promotional initiatives.

Unlike many brands that pursue aggressive, high-profile marketing strategies when entering new markets, SanLucar favors a more measured, step-by-step approach. The company prioritizes close collaboration with partners to explore market opportunities and co-develop products. Rather than investing heavily in marketing campaigns, SanLucar chooses to move at a slower pace, steadily directing resources toward farm development and product quality. Currently, SanLucar has taken the lead in establishing blueberry cultivation in Yunnan province, achieving a localized supply of Sekoya Pop blueberries.

Dingdong Maicai shares a similar philosophy. In the face of intense market competition, the company focuses on deeply strengthening its supply chain and building a sustainable ecosystem, rather than spending hundreds of millions to compete for users.

SanLucar and Dingdong Maicai represent a perfect match for growing together, united by a shared approach to branding and product development. Rather than chasing short-term gains or rapid results, both are willing to invest time in refining quality and building genuine resonance with consumers. In a fiercely competitive market, they choose to slow down and embrace long-termism to earn enduring customer loyalty.