ABOUT
It’s been almost 20 years since Charlie left the road and set up shop at IMS, establishing a home base while continuing to work with the skills and contacts acquired over the course of his career marketing high end furniture. The look was to be an updated version of casual traditional furnishings. Always leaning toward the unexpected, the vibe was to be iconoclastic.
The office was to have no door, the kitchen to be central to the operations of the business. The people behind Francis King would be experienced and talented, always leading with their passion and heart, not with their commissions. The music would be dictated by the day, always lively and unexpected in a showroom environment. In a way, Francis King would be a comfortable place offering options and ideas, the commitment unyielding. Francis King associates wouldn't actually "sell," they would help people find what they were looking for.
Today, the folks at Francis King offer over 100 years of collective experience in the furniture industry, they have visited countless markets and are constantly on the look out for style, quality, reliability and "good folks" to do business with.
ANNE
BLOEMENDAL
Anne grew up watching her upholsterer mom work with Twin Cities design professionals, fueling her passion for interior design. After a decade in musical theater in NYC, she returned to Minneapolis and a design career informed by her theatrical nature and love of color.
IMS suite 408
612•604•0033, ext. 103
MARY CARL
Mary loves the challenge of searching for the impossible-to-find piece, as a partner with the designer. She's been in the industry for over twenty years (not counting growing up in her family's furniture store.) She also likes experimenting with acrylic painting and complex recipes in the kitchen, but ultimately she's the kind of person who will check the labels under your cushions if you let her into your house. She really likes furniture.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 109
MADDY DAVIS
Maddy’s love of fabrics, colors and textures led her to pursue formal study of Interior Design. Ever since achieving her degree, she’s been indulging her fascination with the ways they all go together in helping her clients complete a whole space.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 117
LYNN DIEDRICH
Lynn's background in sales includes a 14 year stretch in the fashion apparel industry. She's been on both sides of the retail/wholesale divide in home furnishings and interior design, including buying trips down south and in Europe. Lynn and her husband are the center of an extended family that now includes grandchildren and a lot of traveling and celebrating. Lynn enjoys a glass of wine, but she's also been known to disappear at certain sacred times for her cardio group fitness fix. It's best to stay out of her way at these times.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 107
BRENDA DUEPNER
Brenda’s background in commercial interior design led her to lighting design and sales - many of you have worked with her on lighting projects over the past 30 years. She loves exploring local events & restaurants, the theater, gardening, reading and home improvement projects, especially with her husband and 2 kids.
IMS suite 262
Direct 612•930•4189
612•604•0033, ext. 104
CHARLIE FLYNN
Charlie's middle name is Francis King, so that sort of answers a question that comes up a lot. He's a husband, a father of two, has a shoebox full of Grateful Dead ticket stubs, and has fond memories of surfing up and down the Jersey shore.
612•604•0033, ext. 101
SUSAN FLYNN
Susan has had a big crush on the Francis King showroom for ever, almost like… she’s grown up with it. She has a fantastic eye for color and nice things, she moves fast, talks fast, and is ecstatic to be part of FK. In the outside world one can find her singing to herself with her nose in a book (especially a cook book,) and obsessing about something on the Bravo network.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 115
MADDIE HEURUNG
Maddie’s passion for design and working with designers led to her recent interior design degree. She’s currently concentrating on the face FK presents to you in her role curating window treatments in #408. Outside of the showroom, she loves traveling, new restaurants and the great outdoors.
IMS suite 408
612•604•0033, ext. 108
KATIE HIRSCH
Katie used her degree in interior design to learn the business from “behind the scenes.” She loves to work out the logistics, loves to see all the parts come together, and she loves color. She also loves her 3 year old son, her husband, and Betty White. (Betty is a cat.)
IMS suite 465
612•930•4338, ext. 106
Allison MATTIACCI
Allison works in fabric sales. She comes to us from the insurance industry and has been a huge fan of design and IMS, following us on social media and numerous podcasts. She and her husband have renovated 2 homes together (and built their kitchen cabinets from scratch!). In her free time she loves to oil paint (mostly pets & loved ones).
IMS suite 262
Direct 612•503•4114
612•604•0033 ext118
RACHEL MEYER
Rachel has been rearranging furniture spaces since she was a kid, and textile science class in college gave her obsession focus. She’s been on all sides of the design industry for 20 years.
Ask her about the latest local concerts, her rescue Jack Russel, or little known facts about Elvis.
Suite #408
Direct 612•326•9734
612•604•0033 ext. 116
kathryn kelloGg
Kathryn's love of textiles, furnishings and architecture have led her to diverse positions in the home furnishings industry. She’s been a buyer in retail & wholesale, an interior designer, showroom rep (FK is her third time working at IMS), a photo stylist and a design studio & workroom manager at a historic foundation.
She spends her free time visiting museums and historic sites, loves spending time out of doors, and most of all enjoys laughter with family and friends.
IMS suite 408
612•345•9114, ext. 110
Leah Kirkhorn
will be handling all of the order processing for Mary and Kali’s orders. Leah has been a fixture in our showroom for many years while she was working as a design assistant with one of our best customers. She is well versed in all aspects of the job and is spending the first few weeks with us getting to know our systems. Please reach out to Leah regarding any questions on your furniture order that you worked on with Mary or Kali. We are very happy to have Leah as part of the FK family.
612•604•0033, ext. 119
KALI PETERSON-SQUIERS
Kali is a painter, she has an interior design degree and she loves color, which is one of the things she loves about working in our happy, colorful showroom. She loves family, friends, her husband, food, wine & chocolate, and, especially, furniture. And she loves finding that certain piece no one else has been able to track down.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 105
Melissa Mae Jensen
Melissa’s pursuit of creative passions like mosaics, jewelry making, pottery and handmade cards during her bar tending days eventually led her to a degree in interior design. She loves to share the creative process of finding the “perfect piece you didn’t know you were looking for.” She recharges by feeding chickens on her sister’s farm and wandering through antique shops.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 120
SUNDE SULLIVAN
Sunde’s love of textiles comes from her grandma, who was a sewer and worked selling fabrics. She says she’s “a small town girl living in a lovely world,” surrounded by husband, family and friends (and a cat and a good book.)
IMS suite 262
612•604•0033, ext. 114
GRETCHEN SWARTOUT
Gretchen has worked in the design industry for over 10 years in sales, order entry, service, and even the warehouse side of things. Styling homes is her passion (also shopping for antiques.) Outside of FK, she’s usually with her daughter, husband and 3 dogs.
MICKEL WHITE
Mickel joined us as an FK Textile Showroom Assistant. She shines at everything she does, whether collating samples or designing mood boards. Just out of college, she is ready to take on the design world, and we’re glad she’s in ours.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 121