She made R$ 1 million selling hot chocolate from just one kiosk on Avenida Paulista
Entrepreneur Meire Nussbacher generated R$ 1 million in revenue over three months with a single dessert kiosk at the Shopping Cidade São Paulo mall on Avenida Paulista. Just S’mores, the brand she created, is a Brazilian take on the classic American campfire treat made with toasted marshmallow, chocolate, and graham crackers. The product went viral organically on TikTok, turning the shop’s flagship item—a creamy hot chocolate topped with a freshly torched marshmallow—into one of São Paulo’s recent culinary phenomena. Lines to order one can last up to four hours.
The entrepreneur’s journey began far from the kitchen. Meire built a career in fashion e-commerce at a time when buying clothes online was still considered a risky bet in Brazil. The pandemic changed her path. Although she didn’t know how to cook, she learned out of necessity and began experimenting with *brigadeiro* recipes. The experiment was so successful that it turned into a business: a *brigadeiro* cart in a large mall on another continent, which quickly evolved into a brick-and-mortar store with an expanded menu of Brazilian treats.
Back in Brazil, a trip to New York planted the seed for Just S’mores. After waiting in line for three hours in the cold at Rockefeller Center to try a hot chocolate with toasted marshmallow—a treat that kept popping up on her social media feeds—Meire spotted a similar gap in the Brazilian market.
From there, it took five months of testing to perfect the marshmallow. For the hot chocolate, she rejected the watery recipe popular in the United States and instead sought the rich, full-bodied texture found in Campos do Jordão. Once the shop was open and lines had begun to form, she made another product adjustment: to keep the dessert from toppling out of the cup, she redesigned the rim to resemble flower petals. The design was replicated months later by the very New York brand that had inspired the original model.
The kiosk opened at Shopping Cidade São Paulo in May 2025. It went viral organically the very next month. A year later, with the arrival of a team dedicated to digital strategy, a second wave of reach occurred: the brand began putting the microphone in customers’ hands, transforming the service interaction into a POV-style experience—complete with a “build-your-own” moment on camera. Posts began hitting 16 million views. The average transaction value nearly tripled in the first three months of operation, and the official TikTok profile has now amassed over 4.7 million likes.
The expansion plan involves a new store format. The entrepreneur is preparing to launch the “Just S’mores Experience,” a kiosk with an expanded concept at Shopping Higienópolis, featuring limited editions and seasonal products designed to avoid what she internally calls the “candied apple effect.” Also in the pipeline are a delivery service and an exclusive kit that includes a mini blowtorch, allowing customers to finish preparing the dessert at home.
The Just S’mores story is the second episode of “O negócio é o seguinte” (The Deal Is…), a series by EXAME in partnership with TikTok. Across four episodes, the production tells the story of how small and medium-sized Brazilian businesses have used the platform to expand their operations. In addition to Just S’mores, the series follows Dr. Pimenta, the top seller on TikTok Shop in Brazil; Skala, a cosmetics brand from Minas Gerais that saw its international sales boosted by a spontaneous video from an American consumer; and Singer, a 174-year-old brand repositioning itself for a younger audience through the customization and self-expression aesthetic that has gained momentum on the platform.
The platform as an economic engine
According to the TikTok Economic Impact Report in Brazil, published in 2026, the platform added between R$ 18.6 billion and R$ 37.3 billion to Brazil’s Gross Domestic Product in 2025, considering only advertising investments. During the same period, it contributed to the creation of an estimated 223,000 to 447,000 jobs, accounting for direct, indirect, and induced effects. On the consumer side, activity on the app can multiply visits to physical stores by 2.9, and 91% of users research products on video platforms before making a purchase.
“When small and medium-sized enterprises gain access to engaged communities on TikTok, the result is an impact that extends far beyond the screen,” says Monica Guise, Director of Public Policy for TikTok in Brazil. “With the series ‘O negócio é o seguinte’ [The Deal Is…], produced in partnership with EXAME, we aim to show how the platform has established itself as a true engine for the Brazilian economy. Whether for a new entrepreneur or a century-old brand that has reinvented itself, the series illustrates how creativity and discovery on TikTok translate into real sales and business expansion across the country.”
The new episode of “O negócio é o seguinte” is available on EXAME’s TikTok profile.
