About It Blew Up
Everyone sees the viral video. Hardly anyone checks what it did to the business 2, 6 and 12 weeks later. We do.
What this is
A running scoreboard of independent shops and small brands that went viral on TikTok, Reddit, X, Threads or Instagram. For each one we log the trigger (the post or moment), the hook (why it spread), the numbers a source reports, and the outcome: sold out, scaled up, overwhelmed, crashed, or too early to tell.
Who gets in
Founder-run (or family-run) independents with under about 50 staff, not owned by or part of a major brand. Every entry is found, checked and sourced by a person.
- No chains, franchises of big brands, or brand-owned "small" labels.
- No AI-written case studies: a human reads every source, and every number links to where it was published.
- Entries close to the line are flagged on the page, not hidden.
Plenty of sites now publish AI-generated "viral case studies" about any brand that trends. This isn't one. A person finds each business, reads every source, and checks every link before it goes up. If we can't source a number, we don't print it.
The check-ins
Every entry gets fixed check-ins at 2, 6 and 12 weeks after it blew up. Each entry page shows the schedule, the next check-in date, and a history of every report so far. Before launch, the history is backfilled from published news reports and labelled as such. Entries whose 12-week mark had already passed get one catch-up check-in.
How we source it
- Every entry links at least one news or primary source, checked to load when added.
- We only publish metrics a source states, attributed. We never estimate.
- Anything we aren't sure about (an exact date, an unconfirmed figure) is flagged on the entry under "Not yet confirmed".
- We re-check each entry at 2, 6 and 12 weeks and update the outcome.
Who it's for
Small business owners, marketers and makers who want to see what actually works, and what goes wrong when it works too well.
Corrections
Own a business listed here? Tell us and we'll correct or remove it.
Disclosure
Some links to tools may become affiliate links in future. They'll be labelled when they do. Sponsors never pay for entries.