OUR STORY

In 2000, Ronnie and Barbara Hedgepeth opened a small frame shop in Jensen Beach, Florida.

Childhood sweethearts, Ronnie had been the southeast regional manager of the frame business at Ben Franklin stores for many years. They named their store Friendly Framers. Ronnie and Barbara welcomed one and all with their southern charm and folksy ways, making friends of each of their customers.

As the years passed the business grew, until they moved into a much larger space in the Cedar Pointe Plaza on Ocean Boulevard in Stuart, where they flourished. Upon Ronnie’s death in 2019, Barbara vowed to keep the family business going. Until three years later, when she called us, owners of The Gilt Complex in downtown Stuart, and asked if we would take over the business. She announced she was retiring to live with her son in the mountains of North Carolina, and just like that she was off.

For us, it was an easy decision to make. When we purchased The Gilt Complex, a custom framing and art restoration business, one of the first things we did was to stop by and introduce ourselves to Ronnie and Barbara. They couldn’t have been nicer. Instead of thinking of us as competitors, they welcomed us as colleagues – another friend.

Over the years we worked together. They would refer projects to us and we to them – whenever one of us felt the other was better equipped to handle a particular situation. So, of course, when Barbara asked, we leapt at the opportunity..

That was in the summer of 2022. The first thing we did was remodel the showroom, which even Barbara would tell you needed a refresh. We gave it a more modern look, with white walls, gray floors, and black display cases. We even added a computerized sales system.

In a very short time our business has grown, to the point we are now adding a second showroom in Tradition. We still believe in the things Ronnie and Barbara believed in – a wide selection of high-quality frames and framing accessories, a strong devotion to the craft of framing, and an unwavering dedication to service with a smile.

With the remodeling of the showroom and a new store in Tradition, we decided that a complete rebranding was in order. Thus, Modern Edge Frameworks was born. We work closely with The Gilt Complex, who provides all our delivery and installation services. And we continue to build upon Ronnie and Barbara’s legacy, making friends with everyone who enters our showroom.