HERMISTON — A stack of chewy caramels, green apples and cinnamon sticks sat at the back of a bright, drive-thru coffee shop at the corner of SW 11th Street and W. Orchard Avenue in Hermiston, all meticulously placed atop a small table.

Heidi McQuin, 48, owner of Heidi’s Coffee, looked through her phone’s camera lens to see how the setup would look in a photo, then shifted the apples around.

This is the way it goes for her every time, she said as she reorganized the props for a photograph of her fall special Caramel Apple Smoothie. Taking photos for social media is important to her because it helps communicate a consistent brand image and can make an impact on customers coming to try the shop’s seasonal specials.

After 20 years of owning and running a coffee shop — and now, two — McQuin is attuned to the ebb and flow of customers, and recognizes how social media engagement can affect customer interest. Although she never took classes in business or social media, she has navigated being a small-business owner and adapting to new technology as it’s shifted.

“We have so many great local shops, so we’ve really got to keep up on our customer service,” she said of how to engage customers. “And having special drinks, that is always a huge thing. You’ve got to keep things new and exciting for everybody.”

McQuin opened Heidi’s Coffee in March 2004 in downtown Hermiston. The small shop offers a walk-up window on one side and a drive-thru on the other. But in December 2023, McQuin added a location on the west side of town that has more space and a modern feel, with two drive-thru windows as well as a walk-up.

An unplanned successMcQuin came to Hermiston from the west side of the state with not much more than a plan to try running her own coffee shop after spending five years as a barista. She said she never really thought of what would come after opening.

“I didn’t have any expectations. It was just, ‘Please let me get through this financially and emotionally, mentally,’” she said. “You always want to succeed, but I really didn’t put an end goal or anything on it. I just rolled with it and tried to do the best that I could do.”

McQuin has been in business for two decades, surviving the Great Recession that began in 2007 and the coronavirus pandemic. Through it all, she has been raising a family — her two sons are 12 and 14.

When she first opened, she was the only one working. Eventually, she was able to add one employee and another and another until now, when she’s averaging 13-15 employees at any given time.

Running a business can take up all a person’s energy, McQuin said, and it did burn her out almost to the point of giving up on the business.

“Throughout the years, I definitely had ups and downs, but I’m glad that I stuck it out because there was definitely a section of time there where I was really, really ready to be done,” she said.

When those feelings reached their peak, she considered what else she could do instead and came up blank.

“In a way, things were pushing me to not do it, so it just never really unfolded,” she said, “but then it slowly started getting better and better.”

Now, McQuin said she’s proud of herself and her business for surviving challenges and being around after 20 years. But mostly, she said, she feels grateful — for the time she’s gotten to spend on it and the success she’s had but also to her employees and customers over the years.

“Looking back, it does really blow my mind that it has been 20 years,” she said. “I guess mostly I just feel grateful because it could be a fleeting thing.”

Lessons learnedMcQuin said she’s learned a lot in her time owning and running a business. To people considering starting their own companies, she had a few words of advice.

Speaking from her own close calls, she said it’s OK to call it quits, too, if owning a business stops feeling like the right thing to pursue.

“Continuing on for too long when you’re miserable isn’t good,” she said.

Being self-employed can feel like a lot, she said, but the benefits — such as choosing your own schedule — can be immense, especially for people with children. McQuin said she’s able to rearrange her schedule so she can be present at her children’s activities or games.

Overall, though, her words were those of encouragement.

“Be prepared to get overwhelmed, to get burned out, but then also don’t forget to really focus on the good parts of it, too,” she said. “I’d definitely say go for it because if you let fear hold you back, you could really be missing out on something, especially if it feels right.”

And for McQuin, Heidi’s Coffee still feels right.

“I’d like it to be successful, and if I can find peace and balance with making it all work (for years to come),” she said, “then, yeah, I’ll go for it until it feels like it’s time.”