Anyone in the food industry will probably advise you not to open a restaurant. The upfront costs are large, the hours long, the profit margins slim… but if you have the love for your food and your community, these things won’t stop you.

This was the case for married partners Martha Leonard and Niky Walters, who opened Maiz in 2017. What began as a small kiosk at Portland’s Public Market House has evolved into a brick-and-mortar restaurant with a growing frozen food line. The owners—a New England native and her Colombian husband—have navigated various business expansions and contractions while staying committed to offering naturally gluten-free Central and South American cuisine.

The couple (and their hard-working staff) haven’t just built a restaurant; they’ve created a gathering space for first-generation Central and South American diaspora seeking familiar food, while also serving the gluten-free community as a safe eating space.

While owning and operating a restaurant—especially an immigrant-run establishment in today’s political climate—is challenging, the heart of Maiz has never been stronger

Photos from Justine Johnson. Q&A as told by Maiz co-owner Martha Leonard in her own words.

Tell us a little bit about your business.

I’m from New England originally, and my husband is from Colombia. We came back to the states after being away for a while with the intention of starting a space that could share our favorite foods. His favorite foods from growing up were a big inspiration. I’m gluten free, and it’s very easy to live a clean, gluten-free lifestyle in many Central and South American countries because the base is corn, yucca, and plantains. That was our second motivation—we wanted to create a space that was naturally gluten-free.

We started in the public market house with a little kiosk in 2017, and we were there for a couple years. We moved to our independent brick and mortar in 2019, about a year before the pandemic. We’ve had all kinds of expansions and step backs—a food truck, a Brunswick location, and a frozen grocery line. This past fall we decided to focus our energy on the frozen line and this one location.

What’s it like starting a business with your husband?

I think any business partnership is really difficult. The first few years are challenging because you’re learning your partner’s strengths and weaknesses in the framework of this specific business. It’s about learning how to capitalize on those things. It’s hard in the beginning, and then it’s really great.

What are the biggest challenges you’re facing right now?

It was heartbreaking when we made the decision to close our Brunswick location. Ultimately, it was 100% the correct decision for our business, but that has repercussions.

Right now, everything is working well and we’re staying the course. We’re being as conservative as possible in our decisions, focused on growing one specific thing. That

sometimes feels uncomfortable because you have to keep doing the same thing day in and day out.

To be blunt, the political landscape is challenging for us as an immigrant-owned business that prides itself on community connection. There’s so much misinformation and unease that one of our big goals is to be a space that provides calm and real information in a way that makes the community feel good.

Talk to me about the community who’s found you. What have you built here?

We have a few different communities, which I really appreciate. We’ve worked hard to be a space where anyone can walk in the door and feel comfortable. Naturally, we serve the first-generation Central/South American diaspora with familiar food. We also serve the gluten-free population as a safe eating space. What I love is having all these people together.

Some days it’s all Spanish all day. Other days we’ll have families with kids, college students from Bowdoin with their grandparents trying new foods, and people with dietary restrictions. It’s wonderful having those different parts swirling around in this space.

What are some things you’re really proud of?

Honestly, we’re just proud that we’re still here. There’s been a lot of curveballs in the past five years, and many other Portland restaurants haven’t made it. We have a lot of grit. We work very hard—and when I say we, I mean my husband and I, but also our entire team.

Tell me more about your frozen product line.

We started dabbling with this in 2020 during COVID, though it was always our long-term plan to use local Maine-grown corn. When 2020 hit, we decided to start even though the timing wasn’t ideal. We began with a mini version of our line that I personally delivered to people.

Now we do five farmers markets from Kittery all the way up to Damariscotta. We’re in several local groceries—Rosemont, Rising Tide in Damariscotta, Bath Naturals, Brackett in Bath, and Golden Harvest in Kittery.

What’s the process for getting into retail locations?

It’s been really lovely. We chose locations where we had established ourselves in farmers markets. We approached them saying, “Farmer’s market season is over. This is our product. We’ve been successfully selling it. Do you think it has a space on your shelf?” Then we would drop samples. Being local, low-processing, and naturally gluten-free makes us a good fit for many places.

Are you still using Maine-grown corn?

We haven’t transitioned to 100%. We are growing our own corn but don’t have the yield or volume yet. It’s a significant step, but we plan to accomplish it in the next three to five years.

What are you hoping for in the next three to five years?

We’re 100% focused on the wholesale side. We want our products in institutional settings—school systems and universities—as a culturally sensitive, relevant local product. In five years, we want to use 100% Maine corn for some products. Some will never be fully Maine-sourced because corn is different here than in Colombia, where they have a year-round growing season.

How did you come across CEI, and what has the relationship been like?

We found CEI when we were in the Public Market or maybe before we opened. We met someone from the Start Smart program. Everyone kept telling us starting a food business without experience was a bad idea. We sat with CEI, ran the numbers, and had someone confirm our thinking made sense.

We now work with Grace [Mo-Phillips, Business Advisor and Program Director at CEI] and have loans through CEI. One helped us open Brunswick, and another helped with closing costs when we shut it down.

Did going through CEI make a difference compared to a traditional bank?

Absolutely. Initially, we faced challenges with traditional banks. We’d been living debt-free, but after being abroad for so long, we had no financial foundation here.
We now have a wonderful relationship with Seaport Credit Union, but CEI was a crucial bridge when we weren’t qualified for traditional loan volumes.