Soto is a design and engineering house founded by Jessa Kano, a neuroscience and chemistry graduate and sustainable building executive, and Daniel Galvis, who worked as an electrical engineer before putting his MBA to work at Soto. Partners in life and business, they’re remodeling their industry with elevated design sensibilities, creativity and innovation at their studio where they do it all—research, develop, design, and test new tools and materials concepts, while building a sustainable, ethical company. Since architecting Soto in 2016, they’ve continued to care for, expand, and inhabit the brand.
Our Story
It all started with a 700-square-foot apartment. Jessa and Daniel wanted to make it their own with a few fixes and a fresh coat of paint, but found hardware companies to be frustratingly out of touch with their needs in every way. Drawn to the design methodology of merging form and function, this beautifully simple approach that inspired their projects simply didn’t exist in the hardware space meant to bring their visions to life. Moreover, the customer experience was frustrating, demoralizing, confusing and inhospitable to non-professionals. Put simply, it wasn’t designed for human beings.
Jessa and Daniel set out to build a home design experience that was approachable, affordable and tailor-made for people who love good design. They began engineering a collection of beautiful tools and materials that would not only get the job done well, but inspire more and more projects— fostering the design, renovation, repair and care of living spaces, simply and sustainably. They named their vision Soto. And then they built it from the ground up.
