Andrew Yonke

Chief Executive Officer

Well I ain't always right but I've never been wrong, and it seldom turns out the way it does in a song. Once in awhile you get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right!

Favorite Gear: 1959 Gibson ES 355 in FACTORY BLACK!!

Favorite Concert: 2017 Farm Aid
- Neil Young's set with Promise of
the Real as his band. INSANE.

Jonathan Urban

Store Manager

Jonathan is dedicated to making CME one of the coolest places to work and your best local music store no matter where you live. On the weekends you might catch Jonathan blowing out his eardrums through a series of old Marshalls with his local tribute band. He is an avid AC/DC, Gibson SG, and Mini Cooper fanatic, so be sure to not mention any of these things to him.

Favorite Gear: 1965 Gibson SG

Favorite Concert: AC/DC at Wrigley Field 2015

Jason Freeman

Assistant Store Operations Manager, Sales Specialist

A native to Chicago Jason has been involved in the Chicago studio scene since 2010 after graduating from Full Sail's recording arts program and has spent the last 14 years playing guitar in several bands around the city.

Favorite Gear: My Custom TSmith 7 string tele

Favorite Concert: Whitechapel 10 year anniversary tour at the Rave

Phil Hunger

Customer Experience Lead

 A hoarder of gear and records, Phil is often found riding motorcycles, baking pastries, and  playing psych rock and ambient electronic music.

Favorite Gear: Korg Monopoly, Vox Royal guardsman, 2002 MIM Strat, Jordan bosstone fuzz

Favorite Concert: Damo Suzuki, Empty Bottle 2007

Daniel Escauriza

Vintage Inventory &
Purchasing Manager

As the manager and head buyer of the vintage and used inventory here at CME, Daniel tells people all the time that he has the best job on planet Earth. He enjoys working closely with his fantastic team as they acquire inventory and obsess over curating the best vintage collection possible, while sharing enjoyable experiences through transparent transactions with clients.

Favorite Gear: Gibson L-00 from 1932 and Carstens Black Flag

Favorite Concert: Gillian Welch and David Rawlings at the Vic in Chicago (2011)

Mike Larsen

Vintage & Used Buyer

Born & raised on Chicago's Northside, Mike is a lifelong bassist & vintage gear fanatic. Specializing in Fender & Gibson history, he's also a connoisseur of the rare & obscure. When he's not scouring the earth for the the coolest vintage gear, you can probably find him watching the Hawk's game, playing bass in local alt-rock band, LFN, or hanging out with his english bulldog.

Favorite Gear: 61 Stack Knob Jazz Bass

Favorite Concert: Fearless Flyers at Concord Music Hall (2018)

Nik Simic

Vintage & Used Receiving Manager

Daniel Albert

Product Manager

Cat enthusiast. Dog petting aficionado.

Favorite Gear: 1963 Jazzmaster

Favorite Concert: Fleet Foxes at The Chicago Theater, 2017

Anthony Krecioch

Shipping & Recieving Operations Manager

Anthony is a music lover, creator of stained glass pieces, lover of all things four legged and furry, and a traveler. 

Favorite Gear: DW Collectors Series Snare, any of them.

Favorite Concert:  Rancid - I’ve seen this band most than I can count and they’re never a let down.

Colin Thomas

Inbound Operations Specialist

"I plan on writing an epic poem about this gorgeous pie."

Favorite Gear: All fuzz, all the time. 

Favorite Concert:  Toss up between Dillinger Four and Jawbreaker. Or Nothing at Slide Away Fest in Philadelphia. 

Jimmy Jawicki

Outbound Operations Manager

Born into a family of musicians and producers, music and its creation has always been a part of Jim's life. Since 2011 he has been an intricate part of the growth of CME and he is 100% dedicated to getting you the right gear, faster than anyone else in the business.

Favorite Gear: Blue Hofner Shorty

Favorite Concert: 1st Concert - Evanescence

Ben Ringhofer

HR Generalist

I'm not like a mean HR guy. I'm a nice one, like "hey, what's up y'all? Want some employee benefits?"

Favorite Gear: Gibson SG

Favorite Concert: Rage Against the Machine - 2008, Minneapolis

Laurel Scott

Inventory Operations Specialist

Bring me an oat milk cortado and a double chocolate muffin, and I'll show you The Vault (unconfirmed).

Favorite Gear: 1960 Gibson ES-330TN Natural

Favorite Concert: Gilla Band @ Lincoln Hall or Christian McBride @ Constellation

Andrew (Dodd) Smith

Inventory Operations Specialist

Dodd is a lover of music- from Black Metal to R&B, and everything in between! He is a  proud dog dad to his standard poodle, Boogeyman.

Favorite Gear: His 2003 graffiti yellow Tom Delonge Fender Stratocaster

Favorite Concert:  Any of the many times seeing Rancid with his Dad

Agata Potyra

Store Maintenance

"Hey Buddy!"

Favorite Gear: Gibson SG

Favorite Concert: Bon Jovi or Rolling Stones

Phil Glodek

Lead Repair Technician

"I fix broke stuff."

Favorite Gear: Fender J Bass

Favorite Concert: Radiohead, Lolla ‘08

Alec Johnson

Guitar Processing Manager

Alec was raised on a small farm in Iowa. He studied anthropology in college, but followed his love of music and lutherie to Chicago. Now he spends his days finding the perfect combination of neck relief, string action, and intonation that makes a guitar feel and sound phenomenal.

Favorite Gear: His own one-of-a-kind creations

Favorite Concert: Daddy-O and the Demolition Band at the Yacht Club in Iowa City

Alec Moore

Lead Outbound Guitar Processing Technician

From Minneapolis,  Alec likes playing tasty tunes and hanging out with his dog.

Favorite Gear: my 1974 Fender Twin Reverb Silverface amp

Favorite Concert: Ty Segall and The Muggers at First Avenue in Minneapolis. 2016

Dustin Martin

Guitar Technician

Dustin started working on guitars the way most people do: by sucking at working on guitars. 10,000+ instruments later and he's gotten a lot better at it. When he's not fixing braces or steaming off necks, he plays with his two bands The Flips and Hi Ho. He's also the current reigning CME Mario Kart champion (and has the trophy to prove it).

Favorite Gear: Weller Soldering Irons

Favorite Concert: Tie between Glen Hansard at The Vic and Sunn O))) at Thalia Hall

Brian Fong

Guitar Technician

Gavin Chavez

Guitar Technician

Daniel Bordonaro

Director of New Product

Dan is a songwriter who has been in music retail virtually uninterrupted since the ripe age of fifteen! He is an uncompromising fan of the Buffalo Bills and all of his favorite music is Canadian.

Favorite Gear: Guild D-55 Antique Burst (mine is a New Hartford-era)

Favorite Concert: Alexisonfire at S.C.E.N.E. Fest 2006 in St Catharines, ON

Gavin Wahl-Stephens

Product Manager

Raised in Portland, Oregon, Gavin  moved to Chicago in 2018. Aside from the obvious love of guitars and music, he enjoys comedy, baseball, and family.

Favorite Gear: 1972 Fender Silverface Dual Showman Reverb

Favorite Concert: July 27, 2013 Phish at the Gorge Amphitheater. Very tight that night. Super funky Sneakin' Sally and a 2001 jam that I believe eventually became the basis for Martian Monster. JJ Cale passed away that day and I was really sad about it, so the After Midnight cover was perfect.

Joe Sherman

Product Manager

Favorite Gear: Roland Juno-106

Favorite Concert: The Flaming Lips at the Aragon Ballroom

Damon Piatt

New Product Coordinator

Gloria ad ecclesiam. Filii raptus in nomine deorum

Favorite Gear: Jackson 7-String Dinky with Reverse Headstock, Peavy 6505/EVH 5150

Favorite Concert: From First to Last at Pops in Sauget, IL in 2005

Saul Reyes

Product Opportunity Specialist

Saul was a dog in at least one past life.

Favorite Gear: Sony A6000

Favorite Concert: Dimmu Borgir at the Vic or Infected Mushroom at the HOB

Anja Tabor

Product Opportunity Specialist

Adam Hines

E-Commerce Manager

Zach Moore

Brand Content Manager

"More Donuts..." 

Favorite Gear: 1971 Martin 12-String that Angel Olsen bought from under me... my '60s Teisco E-110, stacks of Orange Amps, all the fuzz pedals, and all Gretsch Drums!

Favorite Concert: Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs at Sleeping Village, Chicago 2023; Khurangbin at The Salt Shed in 2024; or The Felix Culpa, O'Brother, & The Dear Hunter at House Cafe, DeKalb, IL 2011

Andrew Tricaso

Video Director

"For sure! I might be down."

Favorite Gear: UDO Super Gemini

Favorite Concert: Peter Cat Recording Co.

John Davis

Marketing Outreach & Acquisition Specialist

Not sure if he's the smarest dumb person he knows or if he's the dumbest smart person he knows. John is a non-native southsider that works hard for his dog, his daughter, and his wife (although perhaps not in that order). He can often be found chugging lukewarm coffee, eating spaghetti in the morning, or yelling semi-coherently about how this is the year that his beloved University of Tennessee Volunteers finally put it all together and win their first national championship since 98.

Favorite Gear: '55 Les Paul Jr.

Favorite Concert: Laura Jane Grace at 6th and I on Valentines Day 2016

Deb Jawicki

Director of Finance

From Recording Studio Manager to Record Company Executive to Director of Finance here at Chicago Music Exchange, Deb's been in the Music Biz her whole life. Toss in singer/songwriter, recording artist, producer and vocal coach and you get the whole picture.

Favorite Gear: Neuman U87 & Universal Audio LA-610 Tube Preamp

Dave Piscotti

Accounting Operations Manager

Chicago native and drummer, Dave has been part of the Chicago music scene for 20 years playing with various bands including Northern Magnolia, Fauvely, and Emily Jane Powers. After studying Live Sound Reinforcement at Columbia College Chicago and Music Industry Workshop, Dave worked as the house engineer for Superior St Rehearsal Studios before starting a decade plus career in project management for high end custom A/V companies, installing and programming residential whole house automation systems as well as audio video systems for many of the bars and restaurants around Chicago. The logical next step was to work in Accounting for CME where he is expected to be a lifer. When he's not enthusiastically managing finances and chasing down expense receipts, you can find Dave playing drums in CME Full Band Friday videos, biking all over the city, playing shows in either of his current bands (Emily Jane Powers & Fauvely), and spending time with his daughter Etta.

Favorite Gear: C&C Player Date I, C&C Maple Gum Snare, Ludwig Black Beauty Snare, any Gretsch Drums

Favorite Concert: Every Butch Walker show since 2002, Beach House @ The Pabst Theater 2022, George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic @ The Vic 1999, Tom Petty @ The World Music Theater 1999.

James Thomas

Accounting Specialist