Journey inside a multigenerational business shaped by purpose, innovation, and trusted customer relationships
SCHWENKSVILLE, PAWednesday, August 26th, 2026
A true vendor partner is one that is true to itself. This is the quiet understanding that echoes as I walk away from a conversation with Don's Prepared Foods' Carl Cappelli. It is not luck that a company more than 55 years into the business can hold onto the values it was founded on while becoming the kind of partner and innovator it is today. It is authenticity and a dedication to what its customers need that has given Don's both staying power and room to grow.
"Don's has grown from our Founder Donald Skloff's vision to do delicious differently to becoming a best-in-class supplier for our retail and foodservice customers," Carl, Senior Vice President of Sales and Business Development, tells me. "Our values have remained strong and centered around being the best and customer-focused. That includes striving to increase our customers' sales and success, and that is in large part due to Donald's strong values and his love for making food, especially salads, and the community that builds."
That dedication to the customer is preserved internally as well, with long tenures reflecting a culture supported by passion and permanence.
"The continued guiding values are our employees, their career goals, and their families, supported by an environment of integrity, creativity, and respect," Carl adds. "Employees not only can provide for their families, but they also work at a place filled with the same care and support we were founded on."
Donald Skloff served as a cook in the Korean War, his true passion, and returned home to work in a Philadelphia deli. He brought his grandmother's recipe for chopped chicken liver pâté to the counter, and customers began driving in from miles away for it. In 1970, he opened Don's Salads in 1,400 square feet; by 1980, he was making seven items.
That same year, the next generation stepped in, with Victor Skloff carrying the company into its growth years.
"Victor truly had a head for business, laser focus on customers, and the future food industry. In 1987, Don's expanded into its second and larger facility in Philadelphia to accommodate growth. That is exactly what happened, with a passion for the brands and the customer, Don's grew dramatically," Carl reflects.
By 2003, Don's had outgrown Philadelphia entirely, moving to Montgomery County and a new 31,000-square-foot facility. Growth kept pace with demand, and in 2019 the company expanded production and corporate offices to more than 55,000 square feet, nearly doubling in size.
In 2026, Don's makes 120 products and ranks among the leading suppliers in three categories: seafood, grains, and cream cheese. Differentiation, supply-chain reliability, service relationships, and tailored programs like private label and proprietary recipes are what turn a vendor into a partner. These are no small details when it comes to the long-term health of a business.
"Today, Don's leads with innovations in foodservice, retail, commissary, military, airlines, and much more. Don's mission to be perceived as the best prepared foods company in the industry is achieved by offering consistent high-quality salads and sides driving increased sales and success for all partners," Carl tells me.
Donald's path, a veteran who came home from the war, took his grandmother's recipe, and built what became Don's, is the kind of story the industry does not often see built from scratch anymore. With nearly two decades at the company himself, Carl still sees that founding story in how Don's operates.
"Those values are still showing up at Don's today with our Fabulous Five," Carl shares. "Five principles that guide the organization: quality, safety, service, innovation, and partnership. To put it clearly, 'Customer Vision With Every Decision.' What we offer is the Don's Difference: cool, unique, and globally inspired flavors. This is a true point of difference in deli and prepared foods."
More than 55 years on, that difference still traces back to one cook, one recipe, and a line of customers willing to drive for it.