Don
DON® is an Australian smallgoods manufacturer, founded in 1947 and now a division of George Weston Foods Limited, producing ham, bacon, salami, frankfurts, luncheon meats, continentals and snacking products for Australian consumer households and foodservice customers via major supermarket chains, independent grocers and deli counters.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1947
- HeadquartersMelbourne, Australia
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Don does
DON® is an Australian smallgoods manufacturer producing ham, bacon, salami, frankfurts, luncheon meats, continentals, and snacking products. Founded in 1947 by R.J. Gilbertson from a small Essendon butcher store, the company is today registered as a division of George Weston Foods Limited, a diversified Australian food conglomerate, and operates a 501–1,000 employee base spanning main manufacturing at Castlemaine, Victoria; corporate headquarters in Docklands, Melbourne; and company-owned pig breeding and finishing operations at Girgarre and Bears Lagoon, which have been APIQ-certified and sow stall free since November 2010. The product range is organised across seven categories — Ham & Shaved Meats, Bacon, Frankfurts, Salami, Luncheon, Continentals, and Snacking — alongside premium sub-brands Artusi (premium salami) and Melosi (premium ham), a snacking sub-brand DONSKIS®, and the CHAPMAN'S® Kabanos line. Manufacturing relies on traditional European smallgoods techniques (curing, smoking, fermentation, cooking), and pork is sourced from company-owned piggeries plus approved Australian, EU, USA, and Canada suppliers.
The product mix spans retail pack sizes from 80g through to 1–6kg bulk institutional formats, with both pre-packaged retail SKUs and sliced-to-order deli formats. Key differentiated inputs include the in-house smoking process for Melosi hams and the artisanal European-style recipes of the Artusi salami range, while brand heritage and an “award winning” positioning across hams, bacon, salami, franks and continentals form the core quality claim. The company does not publish a public retail price list; pricing is set by retail partners and varies by product, size, and channel.
DON® generates revenue almost entirely through consumer packaged goods (CPG) sales via major Australian supermarket chains, independent grocers, and deli counters, supplemented by recipe content, brand storytelling, and careers outreach through Facebook, Instagram, and the corporate website isdonisgood.com.au. Its go-to-market is direct-to-consumer through retail distribution, with no dedicated app, no public API, and no disclosed direct e-commerce channel. End users are Australian households (families and individuals) using smallgoods across breakfast, lunchboxes, family dinners, BBQs, entertaining and snacking occasions, with a secondary foodservice/hospitality use case for deli and catering customers.
Don firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Don
- Legal name
- George Weston Foods Ltd
- Website
- https://isdonisgood.com.au
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1947
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- DON® is an Australian smallgoods manufacturer, founded in 1947 and now a division of George Weston Foods Limited, producing ham, bacon, salami, frankfurts, luncheon meats, continentals and snacking products for Australian consumer households and foodservice customers via major supermarket chains, independent grocers and deli counters.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Don industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Smallgoods Manufacturing (Processed Meat Products)
- NAICS
- Meat Processed from Carcasses (311612)
- SIC
- Sausages & Other Prepared Meat Products (2013)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Pork Further Processing (Cured, Smoked, Ham, Bacon) (AFANABAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Cured Meats (Dry-Cured, Wet-Cured, Hams, Bacon) (AFANAEAA), Sausage & Ground Pork Manufacturing (Fresh & Cooked) (AFANABAF), Cooked/Ready-to-Eat Pork Products (Fully Cooked, Sliced, Diced) (AFANABAG), Shelf-Stable Processed Meats (Canned, Retort Pouches, Jerky/Meat Snacks) (AFANAEAJ)
Keywords
Where Don is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Melbourne
- HQ country
- Australia
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices4 records
Markets served
Don business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Retail Smallgoods Sales: DON generates revenue through the sale of manufactured smallgoods products including ham, bacon, salami, frankfurts, luncheon meats, continentals, and snacking products through retail grocery channels across Australia. Products are sold through major supermarket chains, independent grocers, and deli counters.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Don product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Don manufactures and sells Australian smallgoods — ham, bacon, salami, frankfurts, luncheon meats, continentals, and snacking products — produced using traditional European curing, smoking, and fermentation techniques at its Castlemaine, Victoria facility. Products are sold under the DON® brand (with sub-brands Artusi, Melosi, DONSKIS®, and CHAPMAN'S®) through Australian supermarket chains, independent grocers, and deli counters. Pork is sourced from approved Australian, EU, USA, and Canadian suppliers and from company-owned APIQ-certified piggeries.
Product overview
DON® is an Australian smallgoods company and one of Australia's largest manufacturers of ham, bacon, salami, frankfurts, luncheon, and continental meats. Founded in 1947, the company produces its products from its Castlemaine, Victoria facility. The product portfolio spans seven main ranges: DON® Ham & Shaved Meats (featuring Artusi and Melosi premium sub-brands), DON® Bacon, DON® Frankfurts, DON® Salami (with Artusi premium line), DON® Luncheon (Strasburg products), DON® Continentals (including Kabana, Kransky, Cabanossi, and CHAPMAN'S® Kabanos), and DON® Snacking (DONSKIS® portable snack sticks). Products range from retail-sized packages (80g-500g) to bulk institutional sizes (1kg-6kg), with many items carrying gluten-free claims and various allergen declarations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- DONSKIS®: Snacking sub-brand featuring salami sticks and snack products
- DON Artusi
- DON Melosi
- CHAPMAN'S®
Products and services
- DON® Ham & Shaved Meats
Companies that use Don
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Don technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Don partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Australian Pork SupplierscoreDON sources high-quality pork from government and independently approved Australian suppliers. The company's own piggeries in Girgarre and Bears Lagoon, Victoria are certified by APIQ (Australian Pork Industry Quality Program) and are sow stall free since November 2010.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Don competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Don social profiles
Digital presenceDon financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Don leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Don funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Don M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Don
What does Don do?
Don manufactures and sells Australian smallgoods — ham, bacon, salami, frankfurts, luncheon meats, continentals, and snacking products — produced using traditional European curing, smoking, and fermentation techniques at its Castlemaine, Victoria facility. Products are sold under the DON® brand (with sub-brands Artusi, Melosi, DONSKIS®, and CHAPMAN'S®) through Australian supermarket chains, independent grocers, and deli counters. Pork is sourced from approved Australian, EU, USA, and Canadian suppliers and from company-owned APIQ-certified piggeries.
Is Don a public or private company?
Don is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Don founded?
Don was founded in 1947. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Don based?
Don is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, in the Oceania region.
How does Don make money?
One revenue line is on record: retail Smallgoods Sales.
Does Don have an API?
No public API is recorded for Don.
What industry is Don in?
Don's product category is Smallgoods Manufacturing (Processed Meat Products). Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFANABAE, Pork Further Processing (Cured, Smoked, Ham, Bacon), with a secondary code of AFANAEAA, Cured Meats (Dry-Cured, Wet-Cured, Hams, Bacon). Its NAICS code is 311612 and its SIC code is 2013.