About Us

The People Behind Your Learning

Portuguese with Carla & Friends is built by a small team of people who care deeply about how you experience the language. Everything you see – lessons, content, support, updates – is shaped by real people working hard behind the scenes. These are the people you interact with every day, inside and outside The Journey.

See Us In Action

Meet The Team

The Founders

Carla & Marlon

The beginning

Carla and Marlon are the minds behind Portuguese with Carla & Friends and the creators of The Journey. They both grew up in Portugal and first met in the early 2000’s, when Marlon and his mother moved to Pinhal Novo, just south of Lisbon, where Carla was already living. From that moment, their paths kept crossing, and within a few years, their connection became something much more meaningful.

In 2004, Carla moved to England with her family. Not long after, Marlon also moved. It was during this time that they both experienced something that would shape everything they do today: learning a language through real life.

The Journey is born

Together, they created a unique program to teach European Portuguese through science-proven methods. Carla led the teaching approach, helping learners experience Portuguese as it is actually spoken: clear, natural, and connected to real life. Marlon focused on building the structure behind that experience, making sure everything worked the way it should and continuously improving it over time.

A common interest in language learning

Even though they had both studied English at school, it was only when they started living in an English-speaking environment that everything truly clicked. Conversations, mistakes, and daily situations: that’s what made the language come alive for them.

Over the years, that curiosity grew into a deeper passion for linguistics and how the human brain processes, absorbs, and ultimately learns languages. It shaped the way they saw teaching and learning. But what started as a personal journey between the two of them gradually became a shared mission: to help others learn Portuguese in a more natural, real-world way – the same way they learned English.

Today

With time, they started adding members to the team to ensure their students had all the support they needed. And that’s how Portuguese with Carla & Friends was born: from life experience, curiosity, and a belief that languages are best learned by living them.

Learn more about Joana

Joana

Chief Operating Officer

Joana keeps everything running smoothly as we grow. She leads operations and is responsible for bringing new ideas to life - planning, building, and launching the features that improve your experience inside The Journey.

Learn more about João

João

Head of Finance & Joana’s Hubby

João joined our team in 2024, and he ensures that everything we build is sustainable. He supports the team in making thoughtful decisions so we can continue improving the platform and delivering high-quality resources.

Learn more about Catarina

Catarina

Communications Manager & Content Creation

Catarina is responsible for how we communicate. She shapes our voice across platforms, supports our learner community, and helps share what makes our approach to Portuguese different.

Learn more about Margarida

Margarida

Content Creation & Customer Support

Margarida combines creativity with care. She creates the content you see across the platform while also supporting learners directly, helping you navigate The Journey and making sure you feel looked after.

Learn more about Susana

Susana

First-Contact Support & Live Practice Host

Susana is often the first person you’ll speak to. She supports learners day-to-day and hosts our live practice sessions, giving you space to use Portuguese in real conversations.

How We Work

We work closely across different roles with a shared goal: to make learning Portuguese feel clear, practical, and human.

Collaborative by nature

Every lesson and update is the result of people with different strengths working together — producing something better than any one of us could build alone.

Grounded in real life

We teach the language the way it's actually spoken — natural, clear, and connected to everyday situations that make Portuguese come alive.

Built on trust

Students trust us with their time and learning goals. We take that seriously — continuously improving so your experience inside The Journey keeps getting better.

Keep Exploring

  • I learned more in the past few days than I had in months before.

    — Margaret

  • I’ve learned more in the past few months than in the past eight years.

    — Michael

  • This is the only thing I’ve been able to stick with consistently.

    — Ben

  • I’m finally starting to understand spoken Portuguese.

    — David

  • I feel more comfortable speaking Portuguese in daily life already.

    — Patricia

  • I’m slowly becoming more confident every day.

    — Angela

  • I haven’t been this excited about learning a language in years.

    — Asaru

  • I actually want to come back and do more lessons.

    — Alex

  • It never gets boring—and that makes all the difference.

    — Anke

  • It feels personal, not like a typical course.

    — Audur

  • I can finally see real progress.

    — Maire

  • I’m excited to continue my journey.

    — Timothy

Ready To Start Your Own Journey?

Join the programme that has helped hundreds of people finally make Portuguese a language of their own.

Explore The Journey