About Us

The Blackburn Company was established March 1, 1965, by Al Blackburn. The original starting line was Yale Lock. Al ran the company from his home in Stillwater, MN. with the help of his wife Ruth as the secretary. 

In March of 1975 Jim Blackburn and Al formed a partnership to further expand the company. In 1980 the office was moved from Stillwater to an office in Victoria, MN. 

After his father retired in 1981, Jim moved the office to Eden Prairie, MN and started building a sales team. 

Joining the company in 1992, Rick Harker partnered with Jim in 2004 and took over as principal upon Jim’s retirement in 2007. The company moved to its current location in New Hope in 2022. 

Today, the Blackburn Company continues the tradition of providing manufacturers with professional representation in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Chicago with select manufacturers.