In the shadow of Khaby Lame’s deal, marketers face hard questions about influence and value

Anyone in marketing gawking at the near-billion price tag attached to TikTok creator Khaby Lame and his deal with Rich Sparkle Holdings isn’t really looking at innovation. They’re witnessing faith. Faith in what this industry has collectively agreed to let numbers represent. 

Because that $975 million valuation doesn’t seem to be rooted in the nuts and bolts of Lame’s company Step Distinctive Limited’s financials so much as the gravitational pull of his audience. 

The release made that all too clear: it talked up Khaby Lame as a “global-tier traffic entrance”. His company was framed as the “once-in-a-generation traffic gateway” to some 360 million followers. Moreover, those same fans could generate more than $4 billion in annual sales.  

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