In the wake of the TikTok ban in the U.S., millions of users, including small business owners like Brandon Hurst, are scrambling to find a new platform for their social media presence. For Hurst, who has built his plant delivery business on TikTok, the ban means not only losing his main source of income but also potentially losing his team of eight other people who help package plants and orders.
Hurst started selling plants on TikTok last year and has since tripled his business, selling over 57,000 plants in the past year. TikTok claims to support over 7 million small businesses and more than 224,000 American jobs. However, under the new law signed into law by President Biden as part of a $95 billion foreign aid package, ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese-based owner, has nine to 12 months to sell the platform to an American owner or face being banned in the U.S.
TikTok plans to file a lawsuit over the ban in federal court. One analyst believes that Meta would be one of the biggest beneficiaries if a TikTok ban were to happen. Instagram Reels is seen as the most natural fit to replace TikTok but it is not exactly the same as TikTok’s culture. So where would Hurst pivot his social media business if TikTok were to be banned? He hasn’t thought about it yet but he is open to exploring other options such as Instagram Reels or other platforms that allow him to live stream and sell his products online.
