F. H. French Co., Inc. and its affiliates own approximately 750,000 SF of commercial office and manufacturing properties in Rhode Island. In 2002, the Company completed a 108,000 SF office development in Smithfield, which is principally occupied under a long-term lease to Fidelity Investments. For 25 years F. H. French Co., Inc. has called Rhode Island home and has developed an excellent working relationship with the area towns, allowing it to expedite the overall development and approval processes.

During the last 25 years, F. H. French has either owned, developed or built over 2,500,000 SF of office, industrial and retail developments valued in excess of $300 million. During this same period the Company has designed and built more Rhode Island Industrial Facilities Corporation funded projects than any other contractor.

Central to our success has been our design-build philosophy, which is complimented by its disciplined focus and control of the entire development process from permitting through design construction, financing and property management. This approach allows us to streamline the design and development of projects thereby taking projects from the conceptual stage through to their completion in the shortest period possible. Once completed, our affiliate property management company; Blackstone Management provides a seemless transition to occupancy and property maintenance. Whether developing a property for its own account or on behalf of a client, F. H. French Co., Inc. takes an ownership approach to the design, development, construction and management of each and every project. F. H. French’s experience and commitment in creating premier commercial facilities for our communities is unsurpassed in the region.

COMPANY LEADERSHIP

Fred H. French
Founder
1938 – 1976

Jack Keigwin
President, Owner
1976 – 2000

Jennifer Cookke
President, Owner
2000 – Present

Jennifer Cookke is the third generation of family to own F. H. French Company, Inc.

Before joining the firm in 1996, she was Director of Real Estate for The Liberty Mutual Group and A.V.P. of Real Estate Development for Sheraton Hotels Worldwide. She holds an MBA from Babson College and a MS from MIT.