Could TikTok breed the next generation of startups?

Small businesses are thriving on TikTok Shop, generating millions in sales thanks to authentic founders and products that work. Can their success scale beyond the app?

Stormi Steele, founder of startup Canvas Beauty, logged on to TikTok Shop in June to sell her hero product, a moisturizer that goes on slick and shiny, like the glaze on a doughnut. On a livestream, she chatted about her glazes with tens of thousands of her followers, who could then buy the product directly from the app. TikTok would get a small cut of the revenue. And within minutes, she’d sold more than 40,000 units, generating more than $1 million in sales.