"The TikTok challenger had just cracked the Apple App Store's top-five ranking. Downloads soared 855% month over month, Sensor Tower data showed, fueled by TikTok's imminent ban in the US. It was a dream scenario for an app that - with over $230 million in funding and a roughly $1.1 billion valuation - promised to reinvent social shopping through a mix of product reviews and entertaining videos."
"Days after Business Insider's interview with Flip's top executives, President Donald Trump halted the TikTok ban. Flip raced to sustain its momentum, pouring money into ads and launching a $100 million equity fund to woo creators. With TikTok back in play, the buzz fizzled."
"Things unraveled quickly from there. In April, Trump tariffs raised costs for some Flip vendors and brand partners. Then Flip slashed jobs and began clearing out its LA headquarters. In May, the company received an eviction notice for its LA warehouse. By June, the company had slipped out of Apple's US App Store top 100, and within weeks, it cut much of its remaining staff without severance, three ex-staffers said. Flip shut down its app in late August."
Flip surged to the Apple App Store's top five in mid-January as downloads jumped 855% amid expectations of a TikTok ban. The startup held more than $230 million in funding and a roughly $1.1 billion valuation while promoting social shopping through product reviews and entertaining videos. Executives publicly expressed excitement despite personal disruptions. After the TikTok ban was halted, Flip invested heavily in advertising and launched a $100 million equity fund to attract creators, but user momentum waned. In subsequent months tariffs increased vendor costs, the company cut jobs, left its LA headquarters, faced a warehouse eviction, and eliminated much staff without severance. The app shut down in late August.
Read at Business Insider
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