From Madrid to Berlin: How Marta Palacios Transformed Her Roots into a Family Business in Germany
- Mar 23
- 6 min read
When Marta Palacios decided to found Palacios & Palacios together with her father in 2019, she wasn't starting from scratch. She brought nearly twenty years of experience in the audiovisual world, a complex migration journey, and the conviction that her roots could become a bridge between Spain and Germany. What she didn't know back then was how much time, patience, and networking it would take to make that dream come true.
Today, Palacios & Palacios is a company that imports and distributes artisanal cheese specialties and over a hundred high-quality regional products from Spain in Berlin. But behind every cheese, every bottle of wine, and every conversation with German customers lies a story of professional reinvention, work-family balance, and community support – with Frauenalia playing a crucial role.
A Life Between Countries, Languages, and Creative Professions
Marta was born and trained in Spain, where she studied Visual Communication in Madrid. Very early on, her path took her to France to work in documentary filmmaking. For almost two decades, her professional life was closely tied to film and creativity: she founded a production company, curated festival programs, worked in television, and built a solid career in the audiovisual sector step by step.
Part of her training also took place in Germany at the Filmakademie Ludwigsburg, allowing her to get to know the country and the language before moving permanently. When she arrived in Berlin in 2014, she wasn't a career beginner: she brought experience, languages, and a clear professional path.
However, like so many migrant women, she found that these experiences didn't translate one-to-one into the German job market:
It was difficult to find a position that matched her qualifications.
She was in a life phase with young children, where work-life balance plays a major role.
She received feedback suggesting she should "start anew" in a completely different field.
The feeling that "many things were working against her" led to a central question: Does it make sense to give up everything achieved so far? Her answer was a clear no. But to turn that into a new project, she needed support, clarity, and a network.
The Encounter with Frauenalia: A Space to Think Out Loud
In her search for orientation, language courses, and information about the German job market, Marta discovered Frauenalia. There she began participating in professional (re)integration programs where she could, for the first time in a long time, speak about her goals, doubts, and possibilities in Spanish with advisors who understood her migration reality.
At Frauenalia, Marta:
Revised her CV and prepared for job interviews,
Maintained contact with the Jobcenter – this time with a clearer strategy,
And found a framework where her twenty years of professional experience were not seen as a problem, but as a valuable asset.
In Frauenalia's women's groups, the support went beyond technical aspects:
They talked about time, energy, motivation, and knowledge – but also about worries and wishes.
Other women reflected back to her strengths and competencies she might not have recognized herself.
It was in this environment that Marta made a key decision: She didn't want to simply accept the advice to "look for something completely different." She wanted to start her own project in Germany, building on what she knew best: the culture, products, and traditions of her country of origin.
From Idea to Business: How Palacios & Palacios Was Born
When the idea of entrepreneurship became more concrete, the big question arose: What exactly should this business be? Marta and her father developed several approaches, two of which seemed particularly realistic. With these, she returned to Frauenalia to examine them more closely and assess which idea had the greatest potential.
In the Frauenalia groups, the process was both practical and emotional:
She presented her ideas to other women and the team.
She received feedback on feasibility, market opportunities in Germany, and long-term sustainability.
At the same time, elements emerged that now form part of the company's identity – like the name Palacios & Palacios, the result of many conversations, wordplay, and the search for something that represented both family and project.
The final idea was clear:
Build a company that imports products from small family businesses in Spain and makes them accessible in the German market – starting with artisanal cheeses and later expanding to other regional specialties.
The original business plan focused mainly on B2B: working with gastronomy, specialty stores, and other industry players. But then the pandemic hit.
Reinvention During the Pandemic: From Markets to Their Own Store
In 2020, when the first goods were already in Berlin, the lockdown brought many things to a standstill. The question "What do we do now?" became very concrete. Once again, networks played a decisive role: Women Marta had met in courses and training recommended trying weekly markets.
Through these contacts, she secured spots at well-known Berlin markets. This began an intensive phase:
For about three years, Marta was on the road with her market stall at different markets in the city.
This time brought something that wasn't in any business plan: direct, regular contact with German customers.
At the markets, she learned to:
Listen to how customers talk about food, quality, and origin,
Understand what builds trust and which stories resonate most,
Recognize new needs – such as the desire for wine or other products.
Step by step, the range grew to around 120 different items, always focusing on quality and small producers from different regions of Spain.
Over time, the market stall became too small. The variety of products no longer fit in the limited space, and Marta wanted to collaborate more intensively again with restaurants and other professionals. This led to the idea of opening a store of their own.
A Place for Products – And for Relationships
At the end of 2023, Palacios & Palacios opened its shop in Anklamer Straße in Berlin. This step meant much more than trading a market stall for a fixed store:
Products can now be presented calmly – with stories about their origin, the producers, and the company's philosophy.
A space was created for tastings, encounters, and collaborations with gastronomy and trade.
New B2B opportunities opened up without giving up direct contact with private customers.
Marta describes as one of the biggest surprises of the last few years how much time everything takes. Many things develop more slowly than planned:
Collaborations with restaurants,
Invitations to chefs to try products,
Building reliable relationships within the industry.
At the same time, she realized how important networks are: recommendations, contacts, and the exchange of experiences with other entrepreneurs open doors. And she experienced a reality that many women share: In some traditionally male-dominated areas, it's not always easy to be taken seriously as a woman – even when you know the tradition and products very well.
Was Marta heute anderen migrierten Frauen mit Gründungswunsch mitgeben würde
What Marta Would Tell Other Migrant Women Who Want to Start a Business Today
When Marta looks back on her journey, she doesn't romanticize it. She would tell her former self three main things above all:
Patience is crucial – projects usually take much longer than you think.
No one achieves it alone – support, networks, and knowing when you need help are central.
Know your own strengths and limits – understanding what you're good at and where to seek support.
She admits she could have chosen a simpler project. But the pride in what's been achieved and the role model she provides for her daughter outweigh that:
"I think it's a great example for my daughter to see a mother who keeps looking for new paths and trying to build something of her own."
For Marta, entrepreneurship in another country is not just a way of working, but a way of life:
It brings movement, constant learning, and adaptability.
The journey can be longer when you start in a new country – with a new language, new structures, new rules.
But it's not just a path of obstacles: it's also full of joy, small and big successes, and the feeling that efforts pay off step by step.
The Role of Frauenalia in This Story
Throughout her journey in Germany, Frauenalia has been a place Marta could return to at different key moments:
At the beginning, to find her way in the German job market, reflect on her professional path, and recognize the value of her experience.
Later, to develop business ideas with the support of advisors and other women.
Always as a space where she could speak her language, share doubts, and feel supported.
Frauenalia's support didn't design her project "for her" – but it gave her something crucial:
A framework where questions were welcome.
Tools to organize ideas and translate them into a realistic plan.
A community of women who, each in their own way, were reinventing themselves in Germany.
Marta's story and Palacios & Palacios perfectly embody the spirit of "10 Women, 10 Voices": concrete examples of how migrant women transform their experiences, roots, and knowledge into projects that enrich Germany's economic, social, and cultural life.
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