Upon entering ESG Gallery, you immediately feel drawn to the space, which is alive with colors and textures, artful mosaics, and luxurious materials. It resembles an art installation with a multitude of unique tile, porcelain, and marble surface design samples, displayed much like paintings and sculptures in an art exhibition. Therefore, it is not surprising that an art collector like Owner David Daskal is most proud of the extensive and varied selection of products he offers.
David, a soft-spoken Chicagoan, came into the surface design industry after a successful yet unfulfilling career in finance, which included an education in accounting and time on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. This one-time stockbroker and self-proclaimed numbers man had a hidden talent, however, a creative streak, one which is evidenced by the displays in the gallery.
Leaving finance behind, David briefly took over his ailing father’s carpet business until its closure. But it was working for a mosaics company, where he learned about the ancient art form and developed a passion for the style and its origins. In 2008, he combined his financial acumen and business experience to start “Eclectic, Stone and Glass,” now known as ESG Gallery. In partnership with his wife, Sandra, the business has steadily grown, allowing for a showroom opening in 2015, to better service designers and homeowners, plus an expansion to their larger current location in 2019.
Thankfully business has been exceedingly strong through the pandemic. David credits the construction boom and the reflective time we’ve recently all spent in our homes planning renovations for the unprecedented demand but adds that his mid-western values and outstanding team of employees greatly contribute to his success. A success he generously shares by supporting the missions of local charities close to his heart, The Good Deed Project and The Tyler Robinson Foundation.
David has an eye for composition and trends in his industry, thanks to the many relationships he’s cultivated with producers and vendors in Italy, Spain, and Peru, where the materials are sourced.
As the sole, self-funded owner David has had the freedom to explore and invent. Most gratifying for David is the opportunity to work with different materials and collaborate with fabricators on new products and designs that he’s able to deliver directly to his clients, without the delays caused by the corporate bureaucracies of his competitors.
Whether it is in that one-of-a-kind piece of lava composite with gold leaf streaks he designed to surround your fireplace hearth or in that raw split-faced limestone with a plateau effect he developed to elevate your outdoor porch, you’ll find David’s ingenuity and creativity in all of his product offerings.