Science

From ‘latte makeup’ to ‘girl dinners,’ TikTok has launched tons of trends. Will its influence last?

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO, HALELUYA HADERO and DEE-ANN DURBIN

NEW YORK — TikTok and its bite-sized videos arrived in the United States as a global version of the Chinese app Douyin. Less than six years later, the social media platform is deeply woven into the fabric of American consumerism, having shortened the shelf life of trends and revamped how people engage with food and fashion.

The popularity of TikTok coupled with its roots in Beijing led Congress, citing national security concerns, to pass a law that would ban the video-sharing app unless its Chinese parent company sells its stake. Both the company, ByteDance, and TikTok have sued on First Amendment grounds.

Interest in bright pink blush and brown lipstick soared last year, for example, after the cosmetics were featured in TikTok videos with looks labeled as “cold girl” and “latte” makeup. An abundance of clothing fads with quirky names, from “cottagecore” to “coastal grandma,” similarly owe their pervasiveness to TikTok.

Plenty of TikTok-spawned crazes last only a week or two before losing steam. Yet even mini trends have challenged businesses to decipher which ones are worth stocking up for. A majority of the more than 170 million Americans who use TikTok belong to the under-30 age group coveted by retailers, according to the Pew Research Center. Whether fans of the platform or not, shoppers may have a #tiktokmademebuyit moment without knowing the origin story behind an eye-catching product.

Daniella López White, of Hawaii, shops in the makeup and skincare isle of a CVS Pharmacy, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. López White, who graduated from Emerson College in Boston this month and is on a tight budget, said TikTok influencers have helped her with tips on how to find affordable clothes at places like H&M and thrift shops. She buys makeup brands at CVS based on influencer advice. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Daniella López White, of Hawaii, poses for a photo on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, on the porch of her apartment, in Boston. López White, who graduated from Emerson College in Boston this month and is on a tight budget, said TikTok influencers have helped her with tips on how to find affordable clothes at places like H&M and thrift shops. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Daniella López White, of Hawaii, poses for a photo on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, on the porch of her apartment, in Boston. López White, who graduated from Emerson College in Boston this month and is on a tight budget, said TikTok influencers have helped her with tips on how to find affordable clothes at places like H&M and thrift shops. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Daniella López White, of Hawaii, poses for a photo on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, on the porch of her apartment, in Boston. López White, who graduated from Emerson College in Boston this month and is on a tight budget, said TikTok influencers have helped her with tips on how to find affordable clothes at places like H&M and thrift shops. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Daniella López White, of Hawaii, uses a mirror while adjusting her hair, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at her apartment, in Boston. López White, who graduated from Emerson College in Boston this month and is on a tight budget, said TikTok influencers have helped her with tips on how to find affordable clothes at places like H&M and thrift shops. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

TikTok influencer Janette Ok speaks during a media availability, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel)

Holocaust survivor Tova Friedman, 85, prepares to record a TikTok video with her grandson, 17-year-old Aron Goodman, in Morristown, New Jersey, on Monday, March 13, 2023. Goodman records TikTok videos of his grandmother describing her experiences as a six-year-old at Auschwitz concentration camp that have millions of views on the social media platform. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

In Morristown, New Jersey, on Monday, March 13, 2023, Holocaust survivor Tova Friedman, 85, holds out her left arm to show the number the Nazis tattooed while holding a photo of her as a six-year-old on the left in the picture, holding out the same arm to show the tattoo to the camera in 1945 after the Soviet military liberated Auschwitz concentration camp. To combat anti-semitism, Friedman’s grandson, 17-year-old Aron Goodman, records TikTok videos of her describing the Holocaust that have millions of views on the social media platform. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

Holocaust survivor Tova Friedman, 85, prepares to record a TikTok video with her grandson, 17-year-old Aron Goodman, in Morristown, New Jersey, on Monday, March 13, 2023. Goodman records TikTok videos of his grandmother describing her experiences as a six-year-old at Auschwitz concentration camp that have millions of views on the social media platform. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

Reem Farhat, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, makes a pitch for story during a news meeting, Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Jessica Coen, left, executive editor at The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, chats with reporters at TNM offices on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Kiki Sideris, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, use her phone to produce a TikTok video, Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Olivia Empson, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, makes a video using her phone clip to a ring light at TNM office, Thursday, March 2, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Olivia Empson, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, makes a video using her phone Thursday March 2, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Paige Pritchard, a spending coach who shares financial advice on TikTok, poses for a photo in her home office, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023, in Coppell, Texas. At a time when consumers are inundated with so-called social media influencers peddling the latest products online, a slew of TikTok users are leveraging their platforms to tell people what not to buy instead. Pritchard said she chose her career path after blowing her entire $60,000 salary on clothing, beauty and hair products in the first year after she graduated from college. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Paige Pritchard, a spending coach who shares financial advice on TikTok, poses for a photo in her home office, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023, in Coppell, Texas. At a time when consumers are inundated with so-called social media influencers peddling the latest products online, a slew of TikTok users are leveraging their platforms to tell people what not to buy instead. Pritchard said she chose her career path after blowing her entire $60,000 salary on clothing, beauty and hair products in the first year after she graduated from college. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

A cream cheese board, left, and a butter board. Butter boards, the polarizing stepchild of charcuterie, have taken TikTok to new food-craze heights. (Valerie Allen via AP)

Rhode Island state Sen. Tiara Mack, D-Providence, stands for a photograph, Wednesday, July 13, 2022, in Boston. (AP Photo/Philip Marcelo)

Buena Park Police are seeking the public’s help identifying the two teenagers who posted a TikTok video after breaking into Knott’s Berry Farm. (Courtesy of Buena Park Police Department)

Influencers on TikTok and Instagram use their platforms to share their experiences using psilocybin — and the products they like. Many also offer their followers discounts codes to use when purchasing “magic mushrooms” online. Pictured (L to R): @momcallsmebirdy, @mushiesandmagic, @anatomyofloveofficial, @millennialstoner, @lizsueko. (Video stills via TikTok)

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, on child safety. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, right, with fellow witnesses, from left, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and X CEO Linda Yaccarino, testifies before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, to discuss child safety online. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

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TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, testifies during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, on child safety. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, left, listens.(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Todd and Mia Minor, both of Accokeek, Md., left, hold a photo of their son, Matthew Minor as they attend a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with the heads of social media platforms on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, on child safety. The Minor’s son, Matthew Minor, died after a TikTok “choking challenge” in 2019. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

This photo provided by Zenith Auto Care shows damage to a steering wheel column and ignition assembly after the car was stolen, on April 20, 2023, in North Las Vegas. A sharp uptick in thefts of Hyundais and Kias over the paast two years has been linked to viral videos posted to TikTok and other social media platforms that teach people how to exploit a security vulnerability to steal the cars. (Zenith Auto Care via AP)

Matthew Prince in the lecture hall that became the setting for a TikTok video that got millions of views at Chapman University, in Orange, Calif., on March 4, 2023. A marketing professor gave his students a challenge: If they made a video that got a million views, the final exam would be canceled. (Ben Pier/The New York Times)

From right Maddy Biebel, Jack Biebel and Max Bahramipour react to a promotional TikTok video at Ggiata Delicatessen in West Hollywood on Saturday, January 7, 2023. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Contributing Photographer)

From left, Maddy Biebel and Noah Holton-Raphael react to a promotional TikTok video at Ggiata Delicatessen in West Hollywood on Saturday, January 7, 2023. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Contributing Photographer)

Olivia Empson, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, makes a video using her phone Thursday March 2, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Olivia Empson, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, makes a video using her phone clip to a ring light at TNM office, Thursday, March 2, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Kiki Sideris, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, use her phone to produce a TikTok video, Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Jessica Coen, left, executive editor at The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, chats with reporters at TNM offices on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Reem Farhat, a reporter for The News Movement (TNM), a social media news operation re-imagined for Gen-Z consumers, makes a pitch for story during a news meeting, Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in New York. TNM uses a staff of reporters with an average age of 25 to make tailored news content for sites like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Holocaust survivor Tova Friedman, 85, prepares to record a TikTok video with her grandson, 17-year-old Aron Goodman, in Morristown, New Jersey, on Monday, March 13, 2023. Goodman records TikTok videos of his grandmother describing her experiences as a six-year-old at Auschwitz concentration camp that have millions of views on the social media platform. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

In Morristown, New Jersey, on Monday, March 13, 2023, Holocaust survivor Tova Friedman, 85, holds out her left arm to show the number the Nazis tattooed while holding a photo of her as a six-year-old on the left in the picture, holding out the same arm to show the tattoo to the camera in 1945 after the Soviet military liberated Auschwitz concentration camp. To combat anti-semitism, Friedman’s grandson, 17-year-old Aron Goodman, records TikTok videos of her describing the Holocaust that have millions of views on the social media platform. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

Holocaust survivor Tova Friedman, 85, prepares to record a TikTok video with her grandson, 17-year-old Aron Goodman, in Morristown, New Jersey, on Monday, March 13, 2023. Goodman records TikTok videos of his grandmother describing her experiences as a six-year-old at Auschwitz concentration camp that have millions of views on the social media platform. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

TikTok influencer Janette Ok speaks during a media availability, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel)

TikTok influencer Gohar Khan speaks during a media availability, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel)

TikTok influencer Tim Martin speaks during a media availability, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel)

TikTok influencers Jason Linton, left, and Gohar Khan talk between interviews during a media availability, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel)

Nebraska NCAA college pole vaulter Jessica Gardner looks at her phone Thursday, March 9, 2023, in Lincoln, Neb. Gardner said she started making TikToks last year with her roommate and they were surprised at how many views they generated. With college athletes now able to cash in on their celebrity, Gardner began looking for ways to monetize them and now partners with about 15 brands, most of them catering to women. (AP Photo/Rebecca S. Gratz)

Nebraska NCAA college pole vaulter Jessica Gardner poses Thursday, March 9, 2023, in Lincoln, Neb. Making TikTok videos for fun evolved into a serious moneymaking venture for Nebraska track athlete Jess Gardner, who is among the many social media stars in college sports. (AP Photo/Rebecca S. Gratz)

Supporters of TikTok hold signs during a rally to defend the app at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, March 22, 2023. The House holds a hearing Thursday, with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew about the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on kids. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Ken Jary, of Saint Paul, Minn., center, claps as supporters of TikTok rally at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, March 22, 2023. The House holds a hearing Thursday, with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew on the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on kids. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., joined at right by Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., rally to defend TikTok and the app’s supporters, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, March 22, 2023. The House holds a hearing Thursday, with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew about the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on kids. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

People wearing “Ban TikTok” shorts arrive before TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testifies to a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on children, Thursday, March 23, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew speaks to reporters before a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on children, Thursday, March 23, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testifies during a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on children, Thursday, March 23, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testifies during a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on children, Thursday, March 23, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Rep. Earl Carter, R-Ga., questions TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew during a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on the platform’s consumer privacy and data security practices and impact on kids, Thursday, March 23, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, calls for the banning of TikTok, the hugely popular video-sharing app, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, March 23, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

People calling for the banning of TikTok, the hugely popular video-sharing app, attend a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, March 23, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

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TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew delivers his speech during TikTok Southeast Asia Impact forum 2023 in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, June 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A trader conducts live sales via streaming at a store in the Tanah Abang textile market in Jakarta, Indonesia Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023. Chinese-owned app TikTok on Thursday said it regretted the Indonesian government’s decision to ban e-commerce transactions on social media platforms, particularly the impact it would have on the millions of sellers who use TikTok Shop. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

IMAGE DISTRIBUTED FOR GLASGOW ACTIONS AND EKO – Ekō, a corporate accountability group, call out big tech executives on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024 in Washington, D.C. The action was part of a years-long campaign to pressure big tech firms like Meta and TikTok to protect kids over their own profits. (Eric Kayne/AP Images for Glasgow Actions Team and Ekó)

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew arrives to testify together with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, right, at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, on child safety. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, testifies during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on online child safety on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024 in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with other social media platform heads on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, to discuss child safety online. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

A TikTok sign hangs on their building in Culver City, Calif., Monday, March 11, 2024. House Republicans are moving ahead with a bill that would require Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a ban in the United States even as President Donald Trump is voicing opposition to the effort. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

The TikTok Inc. office building is seen in Culver City, Calif., Monday, March 11, 2024. House Republicans are moving ahead with a bill that would require Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a ban in the United States even as President Donald Trump is voicing opposition to the effort. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Content creator Summer Lucille poses for a photo in Washington on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. TikTok is once again bringing online influencers to Washington, this time to lobby lawmakers against a fast-moving bill that would force its Chinese parent company to sell the platform or face a ban in the United States. (AP Photo/Haleluya Hadero)

Devotees of TikTok, Mona Swain, center, and her sister, Rachel Swain, right, both of Atlanta, monitor voting at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app’s owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok’s consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Devotees of TikTok gather at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app’s owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok’s consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Devotees of TikTok gather at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app’s owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok’s consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Devotees of TikTok gather at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app’s owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok’s consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Devotees of TikTok gather at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app’s owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok’s consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Devotees of TikTok gather at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app’s owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok’s consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Restaurant owner Ana Acela Perez, left, assists content creator Jensen Savannah, with a video for her business at El Puro Cuban Restaurant, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Content creator Jensen Savannah produces a client video at El Puro Cuban Restaurant, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Content creator Jensen Savannah, left, and her fiance and brand manager Jorge Millares, produce a client video at El Puro Cuban Restaurant, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Restaurant owner Ana Acela Perez, from left, assists content creator Jensen Savannah, and her fiance and brand manager Jorge Millares, with a video for her business at El Puro Cuban Restaurant, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Content creator Jensen Savannah, left, and her fiance and brand manager Jorge Millares, produce a client video at El Puro Cuban Restaurant, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Content creator Jensen Savannah produces a client video at El Puro Cuban Restaurant, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Marcus Bridgewater poses for a portrait, Thursday, March 14, 2024, at his home in Spring, Texas. The TikTok content creator speaks with The Associated Press on how TikTok has transformed his life and the adverse effect a TikTok ban in the U.S. will have on his online space for gardening. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

Marcus Bridgewater tends to his backyard herbs and flower garden, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Spring, Texas. The TikTok content creator speaks with The Associated on how TikTok has transformed his life and the adverse effect a TikTok ban in the U.S. will have on his online space for gardening. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

Marcus Bridgewater tends to his backyard herbs and flower garden, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Spring, Texas. The TikTok content creator speaks with The Associated on how TikTok has transformed his life and the adverse effect a TikTok ban in the U.S. will have on his online space for gardening. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

Marcus Bridgewater tends to his backyard herbs and flower garden, Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Spring, Texas. The TikTok content creator speaks with The Associated on how TikTok has transformed his life and the adverse effect a TikTok ban in the U.S. will have on his online space for gardening. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

Some of the 30 child influencers invited by toy company Cepia LLC wave at an event held to launch its new fashion doll line called Decora Girlz, at an FAO Schwarz store on March 2, 2024 in New York. Cepia began investing in TikTok in 2019. (AP Photo/Anne D’Innocenzio)

Taylen Biggs, right, and Nubia Williams pose at an FAO Schwarz store where toy company Cepia LLC launched its new fashion doll line called Decora Girlz on March 2, 2024 in New York. Cepia, which is based in St. Louis, Missouri, began investing in TikTok in 2019. (AP Photo/Anne D’Innocenzio)

Deborah Mayer works on a livestream on TikTok on Wednesday, March 21, 2024, in Freehold, N.J. Mayer has sold new and pre-owned handbags and other designer goods out of her New Jersey home for 16 years. Early last year, TikTok recruited her business for the live component of TikTok Shop. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

Deborah Mayer shows a bag on a livestream on TikTok on Wednesday, March 21, 2024, in Freehold, N.J. Mayer has sold new and pre-owned handbags and other designer goods out of her New Jersey home for 16 years. Early last year, TikTok recruited her business for the live component of TikTok Shop. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

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Samantha Mayer, left, and her mother Deborah Mayer prep handbags before selling live on TikTok, Wednesday, March 21, 2024, in Freehold, N.J. Deborah Mayer has sold new and pre-owned handbags and other designer goods out of her New Jersey home for 16 years. Early last year, TikTok recruited her business for the live component of TikTok Shop. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

A luxury handbag is displayed by Samantha Mayer, Deborah Mayer’s daughter, on TikTok., Wednesday, March 21, 2024, in Freehold, N.J. Deborah Mayer has sold new and pre-owned handbags and other designer goods out of her home for 16 years. Early last year, TikTok recruited her business for the live component of TikTok Shop. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

FILE – Devotees of TikTok, Mona Swain, center, and her sister, Rachel Swain, right, both of Atlanta, pose with a sign at the Capitol in Washington, March 13, 2024. TikTok’s extensive lobbying campaign is the latest tech industry push since the House passed legislation that would ban the popular app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell its stake. TikTok has been urging its users to call their representatives. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

FILE – A man carries a Free TikTok sign in front of the courthouse where the hush-money trial of Donald Trump got underway April 15, 2024, in New York. The House has passed legislation Saturday, April 20, to ban TikTok in the U.S. if its China-based owner doesn’t sell its stake, sending it to the Senate as part of a larger package of bills that would send aid to Ukraine and Israel. House Republicans’ decision to add the TikTok bill to the foreign aid package fast-tracked the legislation after it had stalled in the Senate. The aid bill is a priority for President Joe Biden that has broad congressional support. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)

FILE – Barbie-themed merchandise is displayed in a special section at Bloomingdale’s, in New York, Thursday, July 20, 2023. According to the fashion company LYST, the “Barbiecore” trend began after pictures of a pink-clad Margot Robbie surfaced online in June 2022, a year before the actor’s “Barbie” movie came out and toy maker Mattel launched its own marketing blitz to promote the color. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

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What made TikTok such a trendsetter compared to predecessor platforms? Researchers and marketing analysts have often described the platform’s personalized recommendation algorithm as the “secret sauce” of TikTok’s success. The company has disclosed little about the technology it employs to populate users’ “For You” feeds.

Jake Bjorseth, founder of the advertising agency Trndsttrs, which specializes in Generation Z, thinks the app’s use of an interest-based algorithm instead of personal contacts to connect like-minded people is what gave TikTok the edge.

TikTok also changed the standard for what was considered desirable in social media content. The beginner-friendly platform featured videos made without filters, lighting setups or production-level audio. TikTok creators could develop more intimate relationships with their followers because they appeared more authentic, Bjorseth said.

The platform has plenty of critics. Some experts argue that TikTok, like other social media sites, can be addictive and promote unnecessary spending. Others accuse TikTok of encouraging harmful behavior, like girls engaging in skin care rituals intended for older women.

Yet for all the detractors who won’t mourn TikTok if it goes away, a vocal base of fans hopes it doesn’t come to that.

FASHION AND ACCESSORIES:

Casey Lewis, a trend analyst based in New York, said TikTok’s clout in the fashion arena first became apparent to her when videos about Birkenstock’s Boston clogs overtook her “For You” feed in 2022.

As the number of TikTok videos exploded, creators advised their followers where they could find the suddenly sold-out clogs. Lewis thought it was odd since her brother, whom she described as a “frat boy” and not a fashionista, wore the cork-soled comfort shoes in college.

“I’m not a psychologist, but I’m sure there’s some psychology where your brain goes from thinking like, ‘How weird? Is that fashion?’ And then suddenly you’re obsessed with it,” she said.

The pace with which TikTok-shaped trends pop can be dizzying. In the last year, the hot pink ensembles of “Barbiecore” coexisted with the deliberately unsexy looks of “dadcore” — think chunky white sneakers, baggy jeans and polo shirts. The linen-draped “coastal grandma” aesthetic gave way to “eclectic grandpa.”

While the rotating cast of “cores” may not drive their adherents to buy entire wardrobes, they’re “influencing spending in small ways, and that adds up,” Lewis said.

Daniella López White, 21, a recent college graduate on a tight budget, said TikTok influencers provided tips on finding affordable clothes but also connected her to plus-size creators featuring fashions for larger-bodied women, which made her more confident.

“Those TikTok trends really helped me figure out what parts of my body I want to accentuate and feel cute in, and still incorporate my sense of style,” she said.

FOOD:

With easy-to-follow cooking videos and clever hacks, TikTok became a go-to spot for home cooks during the COVID-19 pandemic. The platform made humble ingredients a star and earned endorsements from some of the stars of the food world.

“Every day, honestly, I am blown away by the creativity from the FoodTok community,” restaurateur and chef Gordon Ramsay said in a TikTok video late last year.

Like the clothing styles of earlier eras, foods that had fallen out of fashion were resurrected via TikTok. U.S. sales of cottage cheese jumped 34% between April 2022 and April 2024 after videos promoting cottage cheese ice cream, cottage cheese toast and other recipes racked up millions of views.

Ben Sokolsky, the general manager of sales and marketing for Dallas-based dairy company Daisy Brand, said cottage cheese is seeing its highest sustained growth in nearly 50 years. The curdled milk product used to be a “secret sensation,” but social media helped expose new customers to its benefits, Sokolsky said.

Topics that went viral on TikTok have even spawned analog equivalents. Last summer, TikToker Olivia Maher posted what she called her “girl dinner” of bread, cheese, pickles and grapes. It was a hit, with more than 1.6 million views. A handful of “girl dinner” cookbooks soon followed.

But the eagerness to try trendy foods had a downside. A 14-year-old in Massachusetts died after trying a challenge involving an extremely spicy tortilla chip that appeared on TikTok and other social media sites. An autopsy of the boy, who had a congenital heart defect, found that eating a large quantity of chile pepper extract caused his death. Paqui, the maker of the chip, pulled it off the market.

BEAUTY:

TikTok has upended the cosmetics industry by causing ingredients to get labeled as the next miracle cure or to be avoided and featuring videos of people gleefully applying or panning the contents of their latest shopping hauls.

Influencers on TikTok and elsewhere have made freckles an asset with clips showing how to add faux ones with eyebrow pencils or broccoli florets. The “clean girl” aesthetic, a renamed version of the no-makeup makeup look, prompted both luxury and drugstore brands to rush out their own versions of skin tints and lip oils.

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Some veteran users of TikTok have noted the platform is almost too good in its role as both a tastemaker and a shopping search engine. A popular category of beauty videos shows influencers “decluttering” drawers filled with piles of barely used lipsticks, blushes and eyeshadow palettes.

Though the desire for clicks can encourage creators to follow the same hair and makeup trends, TikTok’s defenders credit the platform with forcing brands to create products for a wider range of skin tones and hair types.

Tiffany Watson, who currently has more than 31,00 followers on TikTok and has done paid partnerships with brands like Colourpop Cosmetics, says the platform has promoted a more inclusive image of beauty compared to other sites.

“I see more diversity on TikTok because (with) every video you’re swiping, you’re seeing somebody new,” she said.

AP journalist Beatrice Dupuy contributed to this report.

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