ABOUT
It’s been over 22 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 throughout 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.
LYNN DIEDRICH
Head Merchandiser/Buyer
Lynn's background in sales includes 14 years 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 enjoy traveling and celebrating with their grandchildren. She loves a glass of wine but has also been known to disappear at sacred times for her cardio group fitness fix.
IMS suite 465
MADDY DAVIS
Sales Coordinator
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
BRENDA DUEPNER
Lighting Sales Consultant
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, and reading, especially with her husband and 2 kids.
IMS suite 262
Syd Winter
Furniture Sales Consultant
Syd was born and raised in the design world as her mother is an interior designer herself. With an interior design degree, Syd loves to spend her time helping people make their house feel like a home.
Syd loves reading, attending concerts, showing off her green thumb, and spending as much time as she can with her husband and golden retriever, Fern.
IMS suite 408
CHARLIE FLYNN
President & CEO
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.
SUSAN FLYNN
Director of Sales
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
Dan Sandager
VP Operations
Dan brings over 20 years of home furnishings experience to Francis King, with an emphasis on sales operations. He has a passion for people and process and takes pride in developing collaborative teams, that in turn deliver amazing customer experiences! In his free time, Dan enjoys spending time at the lake with his wife and three daughters.
MADDIE HEURUNG
Textile & Window Covering Sales Consultant
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
KATIE HIRSCH
Inventory Controller
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 son, husband, and Betty White. (Betty is a cat.)
IMS suite 465
Allison MATTIACCI
Furniture Sales Consultant
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
RACHEL MEYER
Outside Sales Consultant
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.
IMS suite 408
kathryn kelloGg
Textile Sales Consultant
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, 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
Leah Kirkhorn
Sales Operations Manager
Leah has been in the industry for over 15 years. She grew up designing elaborate boat houses for her grandparents and still loves using CAD to this day. Originally a FK customer, she fell in love with the product and people, & the rest was history (🥹).
She loves spending time with her husband, son, and baby girl on the way, and has a travel checklist she can’t wait to to explore with them. Oh, and Leah has a mini golden doodle named Finley, who has become our beloved FK showroom pup. He’s the team favorite when he comes to visit for the day!
KALI PETERSON-SQUIERS
Furniture Sales Consultant
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
Melissa Mae Jensen
Sales Coordinator
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
SUNDE SULLIVAN
Textile Sales Consultant
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
Ellie Ringer
Merchandising Coordinator
From critiquing her Dad’s office wardrobe to sketching fashion designs in junior high, Ellie’s love for fabrics and fashion has always been strong. This led her to earn a BFA in Fashion Design.
When she’s not creating homemade Halloween costumes or decorating for holidays, you can find Ellie binge-watching Sci-Fi shows or competing in mini-golf and arcade games.
IMS suite 262
Ingrid erickson
Merchandising Coordinator
Ingrid, our Merchandise Coordinator in 408, loves decorating with bright colors and fun patterns. Her passion for the industry, sparked by her siblings, has been lifelong. She enjoys seeing visions unfold within the dynamic design world.
Outside of work, she loves painting, drawing, and traveling, with Switzerland being her dream destination.
Sydney Connelly
Marketing Manager
Sydney's happy place is among creative people, good design, and quality beautiful things. With an ad agency background, she’s passionate about human connection and how best we can transcend client wants & needs to help them thrive.
In her free time, Sydney enjoys being active outdoors, cooking, home renovations, and hanging out with her husband and fur baby, Henry.
MICKEL WHITE
Fabric Merchandising Supervisor
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
ScarletT Peterson
Sample Librarian
Scarlett has loved design since she was little and is currently pursuing a degree in interior design. At Francis King, her first textiles-related job, she’s enjoying every aspect of the industry.
When she’s not immersed in design, Scarlett loves binging new movies and TV shows with her pets and collecting trinkets from her travels.
IMS suite 262
Julia fields
Sample Librarian
Julia’s passion for interior design was sparked by a high school class, where she fell in love with ID software and creating floor plans. She enjoys putting together flat lays and selecting materials.
Julia also loves 80s music, antiques, and sitting outside with a cup of coffee in the mornings.
IMS suite 465
Anneka salstrom
Outside Sales Support
Anneka inherited her Grandma’s creative genes, finding her passions in art, music, and design. Initially planning to pursue a music degree, she discovered the world of interior design during Covid. Now a senior at the University of Minnesota, Anneka is deeply passionate about good design and loves experimenting with color and texture. She is excited to continue her journey at Francis King; aiming to create spaces bursting with character.
IMS suite 408
Joel HedTke
Sales Coordinator
Joel joins us with 9+ years of customer service and 2+ years of logistics experience. He has a passion to make every guest experience into one they’ll remember and share with family & friends.
Joel is also a proud cat dad of two adorable kitties and mostly survives off of multiple cups of coffee.
IMS suite 465
612•604•0033, ext. 103
Rachel Port
Sales Coordinator
Rachel's love of interior design led her to earn a degree in Interior Architecture from San Diego State University. With a professional background in design and sales, she's recently moved back to Minneapolis, bringing with her a Southern California design aesthetic to share with the Midwest.
Rachel previously interned at three other showrooms in IMS- two of which are now part of FK (KDR & Fabricut)! She loves spending time with her two cats, exploring new restaurants, and walking around the lakes.
612•444•3207, ext. 124