Ephrata welcomes a sweet new shop

EPHRATA — Moonbeam Sweets and Treats is the newest addition to local businesses in Ephrata. The shop is located at 156 First Ave NW and features a variety of different sweet treats. 

“This has been a lifelong dream of mine, to own my own place and particularly I like the frozen yogurt and the candy,” said Moonbeam’s owner Julie Wittenborn. “It’s because my girls, when they were young, any time we’d see a shop like this we always had to stop.” 

Wittenborn said she and her family moved to Ephrata from Bend, Ore., and while living there she was used to seeing many kinds of candy and novelty shops. While she always wanted to start her own, the market for these kinds of shops was oversaturated in her hometown. 

When moving to Ephrata, following her oldest daughter, the first thing she noticed was that the town had the perfect opportunity for her to finally start her dream. 

“We saw a huge need that there really wasn’t anything for the younger crowd in Ephrata,” said Wittenborn. “There’s other coffee shops and all of that, but we needed to do something that would be open later in the evening.” 

She said from there everything lined up to where she purchased the building, and on Sept. 12, Moonbeam celebrated its grand opening. 

“It’s been super amazing. We have been so busy, which is a good thing,” said Wittenborn. 

The shop carries sweets such as frozen yogurt, popcorn, and various kinds of candies that they order from Annie B’s candy company, said Wittenborn. They also carry a variety of different toys such as stuffed animals. 

“We have our fudge, which has been our number one seller,” she said. “We are already on our third order of that ... we sold out in two days, so I guess Ephrata likes their fudge.” 

Wittenborn said she plans to keep growing Moonbeam as much as possible in the coming years and keep the shop as a good place for people to come in and hang out. Through community support, she said the shop will also expand the types of products that they will have available. 

“I mean, who knows, maybe do another location eventually,” said Wittenborn. 

One of the main goals for Wittenborn in owning the shop is to pass it on to her daughters in the future. 

“I wanted to be able to teach my girls how to run a business and start it from scratch,” she said. “That’s one of my new goals is that they’ll be able to take this and learn from it, gain job experience and do anything. I’d like to carry it through and have them continue.” 

Wittenborn said she has appreciated all the support from the community so far and invites people to come in throughout the colder season for candies and stocking stuffers during the holidays. When spring comes around the shop will increase its hours and go full force in their operations. 

Moonbeam Sweets & Treats
156 1st Ave NW
Ephrata, WA 98823
Wed-Sun, noon – 8 p.m.
541-350-0555
Moonbeamsweets.com

    A row of different jars of candies at Moonbeam Sweets and Treats. Julie Wittenborn said the shop orders most of its candy from Annie B’s.
  

    Along with candy and frozen yogurt, Moonbeam Sweets and Treats also sells toys and stuffed animals.
  

    A medium-sized cup of the Dole Whip Pineapple flavor soft serve. Along with this dairy-free option, the shop also features classic frozen yogurt options such as vanilla and chocolate.
  

    The display of fudge at Moonbeam Sweets and Treats. Julie Wittenborn said the fudge has been the most popular product and has sold out multiple times since the shop opened.
  

    Moonbeam Sweets and Treats features a variety of goods including chocolate, popcorn, toys and frozen yogurt. The shop plans to add additional items in the future.
  

    Moonbeam Sweets and Treats is located at 156 First Ave NE in Ephrata. Julie Wittenborn said she appreciates the ongoing support from the community.