WALLOWA — She’s spent most of her life in Wallowa County and after a brief stint in college, decided her real passion was to open her own coffee shop in Wallowa.

“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, but I decided to go to college instead,” said Kasey Duncan, the sole owner/operator of Buttercup Brew. “I just changed my path and decided college wasn’t for me so my landlord reached out to me with an amazing rent so I took him up on it.”

A learning experience

After high school, she tried the University of Idaho, but couldn’t settle on a major.

“I had about five different majors — I was undecided on anything,” she said. “I didn’t really stick to anything. I wasn’t passionate enough about what I was doing and this is what I wanted to do.”

So she opted to put her learning efforts into her first business.

“I’m only 21; this is my first business,” she said. “I’m just learning as I go, really.”

She’s learning as much as she ever would have in college.

“I’m learning all sorts of stuff; the startup process was crazy, learning all the different licenses I had to have and learning how to track my finances, I’m still learning,” she said.

Duncan has found the most challenging part of being her own boss is finding the time to both operate the business and maintain her life outside of work.

“I have to do it all on my own and still have the time to live, to go grocery shopping and stuff,” she said.

But the part of the business she finds challenging has to do with the remote nature of Wallowa County and the time it takes to get merchandise shipped in.

“We don’t have easy access to anything here, so I have to get it all shipped in,” she said. “I have to get it ahead of time so I don’t run out of anything. Trying to learn all of that has been the most challenging.”

Family help

Although she’s been the sole owner/operator since she opened April 1, she does get a little help from family.

“I just hired my first employee,” she said during an interview Wednesday, May 8. “My cousin just started working for me, Annie Duncan — she’s going to be helping me out now.”

This summer, she’ll also get some assistance from the elder of her two sisters, who is still in high school in Enterprise. She has some experience working in restaurants, so she’ll help during the summer. Her brother, Chase, who is just completing his freshman year at the University of Idaho, also helped her start the shop.

“He’s actually the one who loaned me the money to start this place,” she said.

Family educators

Kasey’s parents, Rob and Tamarah Duncan, both work at Enterprise School as teachers. Her parents live north of Enterprise, but Kasey lives in Wallowa. Her uncle, Dave Duncan, teaches at Wallowa.

A family friend did much of the artwork on display in the shop.

The shop’s name, Buttercup Brew, comes from the family.

She said the family has a contest every year to see who can spot the first buttercup of the season.

Her passion

Duncan said she’s keeping her menu small and manageable for now, primarily serving coffee/espresso, tea and energy drinks alongside breakfast burritos, avocado toast and sandwiches. With no full kitchen, she has no plans to expand to a dinner menu.

“I don’t want to do dinners; that’s not really my thing,” she said.

Thus, her hours fit the menu: She’s open 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday. Buttercup Brew is closed on Sundays.

She said the hours could change, depending on how things go.

“If a day isn’t working because nobody’s coming in, I’ll have to adjust, but my goal is to stay open as long as people are coming in,” she said.

But her real passion is the coffee and espresso she serves.

“Coffee in general” is her specialty, she said. “I don’t think there’s a coffee drink in particular, but coffee in general.”

Business challenges

Duncan is aware of the challenges businesses — particularly eateries — have faced in surviving in Wallowa and hopes to avoid some of the pitfalls.

“I’m not really sure why all of them shut down, but I think a lot of it was inconsistent hours — people trying to run a business alone so they were only open a few hours a week and people couldn’t make those times work with their schedule,” she said. “So I’ve been trying to stay really consistent.”

So far, in the month and a half she’s been open, things are looking positive. Like most businesses in Wallowa County, she’ll be counting on the summer tourist trade.

“It’s been great,” she said. “It’s been super busy, super consistent. The mornings have been great and the afternoons have been a little slower. I’m hoping that when summer rolls around, the tourists that come in and out will help out for sure.”

Buttercup Brew

What: Coffee shop

Who: Kasey Duncan

Where: 202 E. First St., Suite B, Wallowa

Phone: 541-398-1552

Hours: 6 a.m.-4 p.m., Monday-Friday; 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday

Email: kaseyjduncan@gmail.com

Online: Facebook and Instagram