KELLI RICHARDS

PRINCIPAL + FOUNDER KRI

I have always been attracted to and mesmerized by beauty, elegance and grace. Whether it is in design, movement, music, art or language. Growing up, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel the world as a young model where I discovered an immensely beautiful world filled with passionate, talented people. I firmly believe that immersing myself in other cultures and working with a wide variety of personalities both in fashion and interior design have greatly enhanced my perspectives and given me a depth of experience for which I am beyond grateful.

As principal at KRI, I couldn’t be more proud of our evolution. Starting in 2014 out of my home office to now leading a team in a beautiful studio and running a furniture showroom which represents many of the world’s most prestigious furniture brands. I don’t really know how it all happened exactly but what I do know is that life is made up of the daily small decisions we make and my aim is that every decision be rooted in passion, integrity and above all, excellence in design.

I am honored and privileged to be surrounded by an exceptionally talented team who share my vision and obsession for perfection in interior design. Each of them has their own unique strengths and talents which elevate our projects to a higher level and for that I am forever thankful..

Karine pÉnot

LEAD DESIGNER + PROJECT MANAGER

Karine is the glue that holds our projects together. Her background and experience is just as diverse and interesting as the number of languages she speaks (6 the last time we counted). Karine’s background is mainly in project management working for luxury brands worldwide. She has led some of the most luxurious, ambitious projects globally including the Apple store Taipei, as well as De Beers, Gucci and Balenciaga stores internationally.

Today, she has decided to make Montreal her home and has joined the KRI team in 2021 after graduating from Lasalle’s Interior Design program that year and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have her.

One of her major inspirations is the designer/architect Piet Boon whose design philosophy rests on balancing functionality, aesthetics and individuality, thus creating simple yet luxurious interiors.

While Karine is a skilled project manager at KRI and helps keep all of our projects organized and on track, she is also a very talented designer who works closely alongside Kelli during the conceptual phase of each project.

Her ideas trend toward the “less is more” approach which coincide with our brand philosophy and goal of creating timeless spaces which will be enjoyed for years to come.

Rongyou ma

TECHNICAL DESIGNER

Rongyou is the genius who makes our elaborate design ideas technically feasible. Where others say it’s impossible, Rongyou always finds a way to make it happen. With a background in environmental, architectural and graphic design, Rongyou brings with him a multitude of talents and skills which add tremendous value to KRI projects.

Rongyou graduated from Lasalle College’s Interior Design Program in 2021 and has been with KRI since early 2022.

Most days you will find Rongyou working on a 3D model or detailed technical drawings which help us convey our vision clearly to both our clients as well as to the trades who are building our designs.

In addition to all of this, Rongyou is also a very talented artist who is able to quickly sketch out by hand a 3D rendering of our ideas. This is extremely helpful during the conceptual phase of our projects as we can quickly visualize the end result prior to the drafting phase.

Marissa Tremblay

PROCUREMENT MANAGER

Although she began at KRI as a junior designer in 2019, Marissa’s true talents as an administrator were soon revealed. Marissa lives and breathes organization, logic, facts and numbers. Her greatest and most impressive talent is her ability to memorize a series of numbers after only hearing them a single time.

You will find her most days working on an excel budget spreadsheet, emailing suppliers to place orders for projects or putting together spec books for the trades. She keeps all the craziness that is interior design as structured as it can be, all while making it look effortless.

Though Marissa’s skill set is vast, her main role at KRI is order placement and procurement. She is the main point of contact for all project orders and oversees project budgets, making sure that our clients are kept apprised of cost fluctuations throughout the entirety of their project.

Robby black

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

While you may see Robby helping the team lift boxes, pack and un-pack items, his primary role at KRI is keeping the finances in order and with the complexity of large-scale projects, that is no easy feat.

Robby has a very diverse background with experience and knowledge of a variety of industries including music production, construction, computer software, logistics and luxury furniture retail.

Robby offers valuable input during the construction phase and assists on site solving complex issues and lending a helping hand when needed.

Growing up in Montreal, Robby’s family owned and ran a modern Danish furniture store, which is where his love for minimalist designs began. Between the Kelli showroom and KRI projects, there is never a dull moment and he is rarely without a task at hand.

In addition to his role as CFO, Robby also happens to be Kelli’s husband and co-owner of Kelli Shop, a furniture boutique the couple founded together in 2019.

ELLA

DIRECTOR OF JOY

Ella’s main role at KRI is spreading love and joy. She loves meeting new people and must give everyone a mandatory kiss before she can relax.

Most days she rotates between team members laps so she can check out what we are working on and offer her approval.

But don’t be fooled by her cute looks, Ella is also a strong-willed and determined lady with principals and will stop at nothing until she has things her way. Whether its who’s lap to sit on or that her sister doesn’t sit next to her if she feels like sitting alone, Ella demands to be treated the way that she treats others and won’t have it any other way.

MIA

OFFICE SECURITY

Mia specializes in office security. Her primary role at KRI is alerting us when the FEDEX guy is at the door, otherwise how would we know he is there?!

Being more of an introvert than her sister, you will usually find her sitting in her chair sunbathing near a window, thinking her thoughts. She has been nick-named “Bunkey” because she hops like a bunny and eats bananas like a monkey.