TikTok is creating the next generation of business leaders

Like many young people trying to jump-start their career during COVID, my internships were canceled. But that setback ultimately led me to the career I have today.

I decided to pave my own path, beginning a lifestyle shop, Graceful Goods, that sells apparel, stationery, tumblers, and other goods. From the beginning, I was on TikTok, and it has allowed me to gain thousands of followers nationwide.

As a young small business owner, I am thankful that TikTok was the vehicle to success that allowed me to scale my small shop.

In just three months on TikTok, I saw a 14% increase in organic viewership over the previous year, resulting in increased traffic across my shop’s site and immediate sales. TikTok has generated over 70% of my customer base. As a result, Graceful Goods has earned a loyal customer base in Iowa and neighborhoods across the country.

Not only would a ban on TikTok impact my business’s reach and impact on my sales, creating a major setback I’ve made with TikTok, but with being in Iowa, TikTok has allowed me and other Iowa-based businesses to join the ecommerce industry and gives us the chance to be competitors nationwide.

A ban on TikTok would limit my business’s reach and impact my sales, setting back the massive progress I’ve made with TikTok. Last fall, I had a chance to share my story with state Sen. Chris Cournoyer, now lieutenant governor, and I thank her for her support. I hope my federal lawmakers, Rep. Ashley Hinson, Sen. Chuck Grassley, and Sen. Joni Ernst, will continue to work towards a TikTok deal, to allow Iowans to continue to grow in the e-commerce industry.

Maddix Stovie is founder of Graceful Goods, an Iowa-based small business, and TikToker.