Wilmington businesses fear direct impacts of a potential TikTok ban on their livelihoods

A bill that could effectively ban TikTok in the United States cleared the U.S. House of Representatives on March 13.

The bill, H.R.7521, addresses potential national security concerns associated with the social media platform, attributed to TikTok's Chinese-owned parent company, ByteDance. The legislation would require ByteDance to sell TikTok within 165 days after the date of enactment or face bans from U.S. app stores.

Passing in the House with a 352-65 vote, the bill received support from 13 of 14 North Carolina U.S. House Representatives. Among the supporters is Democratic House Representative Jeff Jackson, who faced particular backlash for his vote in favor of the legislation.

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Jackson, who has 2.2 million followers on TikTok, apologized to his followers in a short video on March 16. While some commenters agreed that his apology provided clarity on his voting decision, others criticized Jackson for what they perceived as hypocrisy.

The passage of the bill in the House has sparked discussion among numerous other North Carolinian app users, with three Wilmington business owners and content creators offering insights into how the bill could impact their livelihoods directly.

Content creator and social media manager says TikTok was 'life changing' for supporting her son's medical treatment

Kylie Perkins is the sole source of income supporting her family. Perkins has more than 150,000 followers on the TikTok platform, where she brings in revenue from views and brand sponsorships. She also heads a social media management business, posting online content for other clients.

"It's a way to make money for my family...so I post every single day," Perkins said, adding that she gets get approximately a dollar per one thousand views.

After relocating to Wilmington from Alaska to find better medical care for her son, Perkins said TikTok has been instrumental in funding his treatment and connecting her family with a supportive online community.

"My son was just recently diagnosed with a very rare form of epilepsy. I was able to go on TikTok when my son was in the hospital. He had over 100 seizures," Perkins said. "That brought in over $1,000 for our family...to support our son's medication and all of the things that come with...medical bills, and that was just from one video."

Outside of using TikTok as a revenue source, Perkins referred to the platform's ability to educate and connect others as "life changing."

"I'm able to use (TikTok) as not only education for my son's syndrome, but also income to support my son's syndrome," Perkins said. "And on top of all of that, it is a place where we can all come together and the community is like no other...TikTok has brought so much positivity and support and people (into) my corner."

A TikTok ban would have a significant impact on Perkins and her family.

"I would be (losing) three income streams from losing this app," Perkins said. "That would affect us a lot...it would really affect my family."

From followers to clients: Wilmington realtor converts TikTok engagement into $4.1 million in sales

Caroline Holman, a Wilmington-based Realtor with The Costin Group, started using TikTok about a year and a half ago to publish real estate-related content.

Last June, Holman began creating and promoting her Wilmington Guides, free PDFs which introduce the Wilmington area and its attractions. Since then, her account has gained nearly 24,000 followers.

"I've sold $4.1 million of real estate just (to) the people that found me on TikTok (and) that doesn't even include my regular outside business," Holman said, adding that these sales provided roughly $70,000 of income. "These people would have never found me."

Loss of the app would result in a substantial pay cut and the forfeiture of a vast portfolio of content for Holman.

"That would be taking a pay cut essentially," Holman said. "Even if people weren't seeing my stuff and wanting to buy and sell right now, it's the fact that I have all of that content on that page and it's very searchable."

Holman said she still brings in new clients from older content -- something that would ultimately change with an app ban.

"I get comments and leads from videos that I posted a year ago, still," Holman said. "In the long term, it's so beneficial to have my face (in) as many places as possible, so without TikTok, that would just take away that huge connection."

Wilmington restaurant owner's creative TikTok campaign draws customers beyond local borders

One Wilmington restaurant owner said the social media platform has been a powerful tool in helping recruit customers from both in and outside of Wilmington.

Corey Scott and his wife, Phallin, co-own On Thyme Restaurant, located at 918 Castle St. The On Thyme TikTok account has gained 56.5 thousand followers since they first began posting content approximately 10 months ago, Scott said.

"Now...on our Saturdays, we have more people that come visit us (from out of town,)" Scott said. "It's all through social media and TikTok."

On May 4, On Thyme will be hosting a second R&B vs. Hip Hop Old-school Party at Greenfield Lake Ampitheater, a venue which holds roughly 1,200 people and has already sold more than half of the available tickets. When On Thyme initially hosted the event in October 2023, the 350 available tickets sold out in one day, Scott said.

"That got big because of TikTok," Scott said. "It's all organic, it's due to social media."

Approximately two months ago, Scott and his wife opened Brunch Thyme in the Brooklyn Arts District, located at 1124 N. Fourth St. The Wilmington business owners have also used TikTok to showcase their new venue.

Through social media, On Thyme combines comedy and food to promote its restaurant. Loss of the app "would take the fun out of it," Scott said.

"I think it would impact a lot," Scott said. "When people are looking at (our) videos, they're looking like 'oh my god I want to go there.' It's not just food, it's (the) interactions with customers, a whole bunch of different things that go along with TikTok that draws the people."

So, what would happen next?

While Chuck Schumer, senate majority leader, has not said whether he would bring the bill up for vote, according to reporting from USA Today, President Joe Biden said in early March that he would sign the legislation into law if it were to successfully pass through the Senate.

Holman said she wants lawmakers to understand the potential repercussions of a ban.

"It's our livelihoods," Holman said. "I guess...the ones that are making these votes on the ban...they don't see the impact that it has."

While TikTok's future remains uncertain, Wilmington creators brace for the worst-case scenario. Holman, Scott and Perkins said they would invest more energy into Instagram and Facebook if the House bill were to be signed into law.

"We would have to focus elsewhere," Holman said, adding that she's been urging her clients to follow her on Instagram as well. "We don't know what's going to happen."

With her background in social media management, Perkins said she believes a similar app would replace TikTok soon-after if the ban were to go into effect.

"If they do make a U.S. based TikTok, people are going to say that they're not going to go on it, but they will," Perkins said. "If TikTok goes away, there's going to be something else, and I will be...one of the first people to post on there because I think people will follow suit."

She urged other social media platforms to consider expanding their content creator funds.

"Meta...this is your time to shine," said Perkins of the company that runs Facebook. "This is a great opportunity for Meta to come together and be like 'let's show out for our people if this happens,' and a way to be on the people's side is offering a better creator program."

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: With TikTok future in doubt, Wilmington, NC businesses could lose out