Shanghai’s White Rabbit Candy Became a Globally Beloved Brand上海“大白兔”热销全球

When ice cream maker Adrienne Borlongan first experimented with a White Rabbit flavor， she thought it tasted like “cheap vanilla”. A few weeks after adding it to the rotating lineup at her Los Angeles shop， Wanderlust Creamery， visitors were about as meh on it as she was. But when Borlongan posted a photo of an ice cream cone wrapped in White Rabbit-branded paper， word quickly spread on social media. The candy， first manufactured in Shanghai in the 1940s， is known for its iconic red-white-and-blue packaging and beloved by kids all over China. And when Chinese people began emigrating all over the world， their love for the white， creamy candy went with them.

冰淇淋制造商阿德里安娜·博洛根第一次试吃大白兔奶糖味的冰淇淋时，她觉得这尝起来像“廉价的香草味”。在她位于洛杉矶的冰淇淋店“漫游癖”里，她把大白兔奶糖味的冰淇淋添进了轮换菜单。几周后，客人们的反应和她当初一样冷淡。后来，博洛根在网上发布了一张圆筒冰淇淋的照片，这个圆筒冰淇淋包在印有大白兔奶糖商标的纸托里。照片一发布，相关信息迅速在社交媒体上传播开来。大白兔奶糖最早于20 世纪40年代在上海生产，以其标志性的红白蓝包装为人熟知，深受中国各地的孩子喜爱。随着中国人开始移居世界各地，他们把对这款白色奶糖的喜爱也带到了当地。

Soon after Borlongan posted that photo， people were driving to Wanderlust from all over California. And that’s when she realized she had a phenomenon on her hands. Since then， White Rabbit has been a mainstay of Wanderlust’s ice cream lineup and is regularly sold out in their webshop.

博洛根发布那张照片后不久，加利福尼亚州各地的人们纷纷驱车前往“漫游癖”。这时博洛根才意识到自己手上的这款冰淇淋是个宝贝。自此，大白兔奶糖味冰淇淋成了“漫游癖”冰淇淋系列的主打款，在他们的网店上也经常被抢购一空。

But the story of a bestselling ice cream is about way more than taste―it’s about the overseas Chinese， the power of nostalgia， and adorable， eye-catching branding.

然而，这款畅销冰淇淋的故事讲述的远不止味道，还关乎海外华人、怀旧的力量，以及可爱醒目的品牌形象。

Made in China

中国制造

White Rabbit’s origins date back to a now-defunct business called the ABC Company， founded in Shanghai in 1943. It was later sold to the state-owned Guan Sheng Yuan Food Group， which owns it to this day. Originally， the candies had a picture of Mickey Mouse on their wrappers—perfect for appealing to children. But as Chinese national pride soared and it became less fashionable to use Western images， the company rebranded and put a cartoon rabbit on the packaging instead.

大白兔奶糖源自上海“爱皮西糖果厂”，该糖果厂成立于1943 年，现已不存在。后来，这款奶糖被卖给了国营的冠生园食品集团，至今一直为该集团所有。起初，奶糖包装上的图案是一只米老鼠，非常适合用来吸引孩子。然而，随着中国人的民族自豪感高涨，使用西方形象就不怎么时兴了，于是冠生园为这款奶糖重新设计了品牌形象，在包装上改用一只卡通兔子的图案。

The mix of colorful， easy-to-spot wrappers and the sweet milky taste proved a winner. Kids from Beijing to Hong Kong grew up on the sweets， and it also became a national symbol of the country—most famously， US President Richard Nixon was given some when he made his historic visit to China in 1972.

香甜的奶味加上显眼的彩色包装使大白兔奶糖大获成功。从北京到香港，全中国的孩子都是吃着大白兔奶糖长大的。这款奶糖还成为中国的一个国家象征——最著名的事件便是1972 年美国时任总统理查德·尼克松对中国进行历史性访问时，收到了中方送他的大白兔奶糖。

As for the flavor？ The creamy consistency comes from actual milk， and there’s an edible piece of rice paper between the candy and the wrapper to prevent melting. Over the years， White Rabbit tried out other flavors， including red bean and peanut. But it’s the original version that has the most nostalgia connected to it.

这款奶糖的味道如何呢？那浓浓的奶味源自纯牛奶，为防止软化，奶糖和外包装纸之间还裹着一层可食用的米纸。多年来，“大白兔”也曾尝试推出其他口味，包括红豆味和花生味，但还是原味最能勾起人们的怀旧之情。

However， the candy’s popularity can be easily seen in the enthusiastic response in the market towards all things White Rabbit. The White Rabbit brand has amassed a devoted following among the newer generation that has moved beyond its various flavored candies. When it teamed up with a local beauty brand to sell White Rabbit-inspired lip balms online in 2018， the first batch of 920 products sold out in half a minute. An additional 10，000 sets of lip balm sold out in three hours when sales opened the next day. In 2019， a pop-up White Rabbit Milk Tea shop in Shanghai was so popular that people were willing to wait in line for up to four hours for a cup of milk tea.

只要是与“大白兔”有关的东西，市场反响都很热烈，可见这款奶糖有多受欢迎。大白兔品牌在年轻一代中积累了一大批铁杆粉丝，他们购买的可不仅仅是各种口味的大白兔奶糖。2018 年，“大白兔”联合中国某本土美妆品牌，在网上销售以大白兔奶糖为灵感来源的润唇膏，第一批920 支仅用半分钟就卖完了。次日追加的1 万套润唇膏，上架3 小时便售罄。2019 年， 上海的大白兔奶茶快闪店也颇受欢迎，为买到一杯奶茶，人们愿意排长达4 小时的队。

A new generation

新一代“大白兔”人

Some of the kids who grew up snacking on White Rabbit candies are now artists， chefs and entrepreneurs doing their part to evolve the brand. “I did grow up with White Rabbit. During my childhood the variety of candy was not very rich， the White Rabbit candy was very popular， even a little extravagant，” says Li Xiang， founder of X+ Living and chief designer of the White Rabbit Flagship store in Shanghai. “It sweetened the childhood of many people.”

吃大白兔奶糖长大的孩子，有的如今已是艺术家、大厨、企业家，他们在为这个品牌的发展尽自己的一份力。“我就是吃着大白兔奶糖长大的。在我的童年，糖果种类不是很多，当时大白兔奶糖非常受欢迎，甚至有点奢侈。”李想说道。她是建筑设计公司唯想国际的创始人，也是位于上海的大白兔全球旗舰店的首席设计师。“大白兔奶糖让许多人拥有了甜甜的童年。”

Growing up in Harbin in northern China， Li remembers White Rabbit as being closely linked with festivities in China—a luxurious gift for children as a special reward. But what inspires Li the most is the brand’s evolving business philosophy. “As the modern business develops， their business philosophy also evolves， such as collaborating with other brands， opening pop-up stores， selling merchandise and opening their first flagship store，” says Li.