Our Origin Story

   In 1963 Don Spaulding decided to go into business for himself as a Manufacturers Representative and named the company Spaulding Sales. His first group of manufacturers that he began this long journey was a spice company in Detroit, a mushroom packer in the thumb of Michigan and two cheese companies in Wisconsin. The first couple of years had its challenges but to his good fortune in 1965 he met a young couple that had just started selling something called "pizza". The young entrepreneurs were Mike and Marion Ilitch, the founders of Little Caesar''s Pizza. Don and the Ilitches became fast friends.  Mr. Spaulding then began a long history of suppling Little Ceasar's Enterprises, cheese, mushrooms and other items. Then in 1966, Don met another young guy making pizza, this time in Ann Arbor Michigan, and his name was Tom Monahan, the founder of  Domino’s Pizza.

​

   Don's son, Pat Spaulding went to work for the company in 1976 and was assigned to manage all the cheese business that the company had built over the past 11 years. Now Don was best known at this time as the mushroom king and Pat became the prince of cheese. Then in 1983 two events happened, Don's daughter Suzanne Spaulding joined the company and Pat got his first order of mozzarella from Bil Mar foods in Holland Mi.  The great reputation Spaulding and Associates would create would expand their business opportunities and eventually culminate in the creation of The Cheese Guys.