We moved to Portugal and started a business. Our marriage and company survived

In April 2025 we moved to Lisbon and, within days of each other, lost our jobs. Living out of suitcases, we filed LLC paperwork with the IRS and launched a micro-marketing agency, betting on nearly 15 years of my experience in content and brand strategy and my husbands project-management and finance skills.

It didnt take long for the cracks to show. Back in the US we had kept work separate from home and had been one anothers safe space; running a business together exposed awkward edges. He struggled with the volume of client requests, I had no idea how to do taxes in two countries, and we found ourselves biting our tongues instead of relying on the conflict tools wed used in marriage.

Everything shifted when we treated the business like our relationship: clear communication about needs and tasks, naming the things we hated, and leaning into each others strengths. Once we divided roles and stopped trying to do everything at once, things began to click.

Portugal, Lisbon

portugal, lisbon, micro marketing, marketing agency, llc filing, irs, content strategy, brand strategy, project management, business partners