Brooke Brown stands outside her recently-opened third Honey and Pine coffee stand in Bend. The business started in Redmond two years ago. (Geoff Folsom/Spokesman photo)

While Redmond is full of businesses that started in Bend and expanded north, one local drive-thru coffee shop is helping reverse that trend.

Honey and Pine Coffee Company, which opened in 2017 at 610 SW 6th Street in downtown Redmond, opened in Salem last fall and, a few weeks ago, added a location at 644 SE 9th Street in Bend. Owner Brooke Brown said she was ready for the challenge, even if it’s a major commitment.

“I’ve put a lot of money back into the business, I’m constantly reinvesting and I’m pretty minimalistic,” she said. “We do have a super-loyal customer base. They’ve been really supportive and helpful in the growing process.”

Regular Redmond customers, who are making a run to Costco or other errands, have provided a boost to the Bend location as it gets its name out, Brown, 25, said. But it is also becoming popular with Bend High School students and workers from nearby businesses like Avid Cider Co. and Parr Lumber.

Lynette Porter of Terrebonne is among the customers who have stopped by to see Brown on trips to Bend. She said she was hooked since her first visit to Honey and Pine shortly after it opened in Redmond.

“I didn’t know what I wanted exactly, so she kind of mixed something together,” Porter said of her first visit. “I love how creative she is. She really cares about her customers and makes sure they love her coffee.”

While Brown had longer-term plans to expand, she didn’t think she would go to Bend so quickly.

“I fell in love with the building and the location,” she said. “Everything just felt like it was meant to be, so I went ahead and opened it.”

Porter is excited to see Brown expand.

“I’m so happy for her,” she said. “I think Bend needs to experience some good coffee.”

Brown had a contract for the Salem location before Redmond, but decided to branch out while waiting for things to come together in the Willamette Valley. She ended up running the Redmond location by herself until it took off.

Brown now has 12 employees, with her mother managing the Salem store and Maddy Walker, who also works in real estate, running the Redmond location while Brown focuses on Bend. Once again, she is taking on most of the work, staying in the store from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. She ran the Redmond store alone for the first year, and plans to do so for a while in Bend until the store grows more.

“We hit the first year, and kind of hit a boom, so I was able to hire people,” Brown said of the Redmond location.

Honey and Pine has made some changes in its offerings since it opened in Redmond. Pastries are now provided by Sweetheart Bakery of Bend, instead of Sisters Bakery.

“Just because Sweetheart delivers and it’s a good product,” Brown said. “Everyone seems to love ‘em.”

The Bend location was most recently a taco shop, which required major cleaning, Brown said. But it had also been a coffee shop in the past, so no major structural changes were needed.

Brown would like to have seven coffee shops within five years, though she plans to take a break from expanding for at least a year. She said she has a dream of providing career-level jobs with benefits for baristas, though that will also take time.

Among the other Redmond businesses to expand to Bend are Modern Botanicals and Riff Cold-Brewed Coffee, which has a production facility in Redmond and recently opened a taproom in Bend’s Box Factory, said Eric Sande, executive director of the Redmond Chamber of Commerce.

While running a store by herself has its challenges, Brown said the customers make it worth it.

“I just love all the customers we get to see every day,” she said. “Everybody wants to see a smiling face every day, so to be able to be that person is pretty rewarding.”

Customers feel the same way about Brown. Porter said it’s tough to put into words how great the owner is.

“She’s just awesome,” Porter said.

— Reporter: 541-548-2186, gfolsom@redmondspokesman.com