Karls is Berry Good, Indeed

AS THE STORY GOES, HE WAS PRACTICALLY BORN IN A STRAWBERRY FIELD—Jokingly, of course.

Robert Dahl, managing director of Karls, sports a scarlet strawberry-stickered hard hat, ahead of his newest location: Karls Erlebnis-Dorf (Adventure Village) located next to the Westfield Centro shopping mall in Oberhausen, Germany.

It’s launch day in mid-July as the new attraction—complete with its oversized toilet slide—opens to the public. The operator has the kind of presence usually reserved for rock stars rather than executives. As he walks around the park on opening day, there’s a steady stream of people hoping for a photograph, a handshake, or a chat. He’s happy to oblige. His enthusiasm is genuine; his energy boundless.

Some people wear their hearts on their sleeves. Dahl wears his brand there, too. “I love strawberries so much, I got a tattoo on my arm!” he says, laughing as he rolls up his cuff to reveal the company’s cute strawberry logo.

Employees have even asked if he’ll foot the bill for their strawberry tattoos. “I say, ‘Of course!’” More than 70 people at Karls have them. He was less thrilled when his eldest daughter came home from Ibiza with one, but now, all three of his grown children have tattoos as well. The permanent ink shows how the Dahls are serious about strawberries.

Cultivating Fun

What began as the family strawberry farm near the German city of Rostock—started by Dahl’s grandfather, Karl—has diversified into a strawberry empire spanning eight Karls Erlebnis-Dorf destinations, retail, food and beverage, hospitality, and accommodation offerings.

Karls is still Germany’s biggest strawberry producer. Its strawberry-themed kiosks are a national familiar sight, an idea sparked by a strawberry-shaped booth that Dahl’s sister Ulrike saw on a 1989 trip to Wimbledon in England.

The Oberhausen project is the eighth Erlebnis-Dorf park, joining Rövershagen, Zirkow, Koserow, Warnsdorf, Elstal, Döbeln, and Loxstedt. Karls has also planted the seeds for its first park in the United States at Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard, California. Dahl aims to provide a fresh, homespun alternative to the state’s destination theme park resorts.

The Dahl family has a talent for blending strawberries with shopping, dining, and attractions. At Karls Erlebnis-Dorf Oberhausen, guests can race through a giant strawberry on a caterpillar coaster from SBF-Visa Group, browse homemade jams, and take a strawberry doner kebab-themed Gerstlauer Sky Fly ride for a spin, before tasting the real dish at Karls’ own restaurant.

Instead of a ball pit, there’s a corn barn where children—and kids at heart—can dive into piles of actual corn. Guests can ride Germany’s currywurst sausages at Curryversum, an attraction built by Metallbau Emmeln.

Among the attractions is an ABC Rides Switzerland tractor ride, the first ride that Dahl ever purchased for Karls. It was his gateway into the world of IAAPA Expos, an experience that would change the way he saw Karls’ future.

Meeting the Makers

“The heart of each Karls is the Manufakturen-Markt,” Dahl explains. Essentially, this is a huge makers market, where visitors can see everything from strawberry candies to jams, cakes, breads, soaps, and scented candles being made. Staff deliver live demonstrations daily, and Karls encourages people to try before they buy.

At Oberhausen, the Manufakturen-Markt covers 7,000 square meters. It is also home to an indoor playground, smaller rides, restaurants, and a large retail store.

Outside, guests will find more attractions, food options, and play areas, including a water playground and a play structure crafted from shipping containers. Karls has a tradition of using upcycled and recycled materials. Hotel Alles Paletti at Karl’s Adventure Village Rövershagen demonstrates its sustainability credentials, transforming reclaimed materials into imaginative accommodations.

“Some of the bricks we’re using at Oberhausen are up to 100 years old. So, even though it’s a new build, the atmosphere from day one is really warm and cozy,” Dahl says. Almost everything at Karls, from the rides and slides to the restaurants, tables and chairs, has what he calls “the strawberry touch.” The result is an immersive environment that integrates the family’s farming heritage into every aspect of the guest experience, strengthening the storytelling and the brand.

Dahl is thrilled with a pair of Betty’s Beerchen Boomerang coasters from Vekoma launching this year at Karls Erlebnis-Dorf Döbeln and Karls Erlebnis-Dorf Elstal. The ride station is a massive version of one of Karls’ strawberry kiosks, with ride vehicles (that debuted on the trade show floor at IAAPA Expo Europe 2025) resembling strawberry punnets. The station displays an 80-square-meter LED screen that features his mother, Elisabeth. “I found a picture of her selling strawberries when she was 39,” Dahl says. Karls has turned that image into a mini-movie. His mother can talk again to guests and share stories from behind the strawberry counter. “It’s very beautiful,” he says.

Betting on Bibi & Tina

So far, Karls has centered on a strawberry universe. But that’s all set to change when the company opens the world’s first Bibi & Tina theme park on July 1, 2027, next to the Karls Erlebnis-Dorf in Elstal near Berlin. Backed by a €60 million investment, the new park marks the next chapter in Karls’ expansion strategy.

For years, Karls had its own intellectual property (IP): the cuddly strawberry-bear Karlchen and his cast of friends. Dahl wanted to bring Karlchen to life through movies to reach a wider audience. He approached Kiddinx, owners of the Bibi & Tina IP, which had brought the stories of the horse-riding best friends to the screen. Martina Priemer, who heads Kiddinx’s parent company Good Time Holding GmbH, told Dahl a movie would be too expensive and suggested he start with audio dramas instead. Twelve Karlchen tales are now available on streaming platforms.

Dahl then asked why there was no Bibi & Tina theme park—and then offered to build one himself. He already knew the brand well. “I liked Bibi & Tina because I’d heard it many times in my daughters’ rooms when they were little.”

Becoming a steward of someone else’s IP was a significant step. Fan expectations are high, and Karls must balance respect for the Bibi & Tina source material with an operationally successful theme park experience.

“When we started the design process, it was amazing and very difficult for us to dive into this totally other world,” Dahl says. “The first thing we asked the design team to do was to listen to all 126 Bibi & Tina audiobooks and watch all 90 movies—because you can only design the story when you know the story.”

Every experience will be rooted in existing stories. Guests will join Dr. Eichhorn, the friendly young vet and a regular character in Bibi & Tina, for a ride in his jeep. The Old Oak (Die alte Eiche), where Bibi and Tina meet, forms the park’s centerpiece. The Old Oak will contain a playground and serve as the focal point for the park’s closing show. There’s also a Bibi & Tina musical theater. Besides the park attractions, Karls is developing a Bibi & Tina-inspired hotel and restaurants. Dahl is abuzz with excitement about a Mack Rides collaboration to be unveiled at IAAPA Expo Europe 2026 in London.

Beyond the creative challenge, the development signals the scale of Karls’ ambitions. The Bibi & Tina theme park joins the existing Karls Erlebnis-Dorf Elstal park on the 82-hectare site, creating the critical mass needed to drive visitation, extend dwell time, and increase the appeal of the venues. “Both parks will be stronger,” Dahl says. His vision of a multi-gate theme park resort destination includes hotels and a water park.

California Dreamin’

Dahl is open to bringing private equity into the U.S. arm of the business, Karls LLC, where the challenge of scaling might require a different approach. His current goal is to complete the Oxnard park. Karls plans to combine strawberry and nautical themes at the new attraction, which breathes new life into the Fisherman’s Wharf site. Karls is digging in for the long haul, signing a 40-year lease with California’s Ventura County. Construction is already underway, while Dahl targets a May 2028 opening. “We want to be ready for the start of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.”

Dahl is mindful of legacy. His two daughters and son have each spent a year shadowing him after finishing school, learning the realities of running the business. He hopes they might one day choose to join Karls but insists the decision is entirely theirs.

What drives him is a desire to inspire people. “I love to show that things are possible.” That’s the reason his days have become a juggling act. “I love being a strawberry grower, a food and beverage operator, a hotel owner, and an amusement park operator. It’s a gift for my life,” says the man raised in a strawberry field.

For now, his focus is on the future. New parks, new IPs, and new markets all beckon. If all goes as planned, “Strawberry Fields Forever” could become a reality for this family business as Karls’ ambitions come to fruition.

While the parks bring in more revenue than strawberries these days, Dahl never loses sight of where Karls began, thanks in part to the tattooed reminder on his arm. “Strawberries are the heart and soul of Karls,” he concludes.