A couple who previously used to struggle with debt completely turned their lives around when they set up their own TikTok account during lockdown. Cat Keenan and Shaun Nyland from Chepstow now live in a stunning housing estate in Newport after making enough money from TikTok and Youtube alone to pay off their mortgage.
Cat, 32, previously used to run a dog walking business while Shaun, 31, worked in sales at DPD. They both quit their jobs in 2020 and now boast over one million subscribers each, Wales Online reports.
After deciding to quit, within just one month Cat was already earning more in one day for her video content than she would earn in a month by walking dogs. Shaun was also raking in the cash as companies were desperate for the pair to advertise their products on their channels.
As lockdown continued, fans became more invested with the couple's lives who share a five-year-old son called Leo together as they would share videos from their days out together to their latest pranks on one another.
They also sometimes documented Q&A's sessions and life updates which attracted millions of viewers who were fascinated with how they went from normal working people to internet sensations in such a short space of time. Three years on from starting their social media careers the wealthy couple have shared their tips for aspiring TikTokers and confided how their new lives led to them losing some of their friends and even to their own break-up.
Sat in the living room of their four-bed detached house with their cocker spaniel, Bailey the couple described how their lives used to be when they first met eight years ago. Cat said: “I was 24 and had just had my first child Tommy.
"I was working as a customer service adviser for an insurance broker which I’d done for a long time before I went into dog walking.” Shaun, 31 had studied business and marketing at university and was on a graduate scheme at DPD before joining sales.
He said: “I decided I had to try and do something with sales because we were struggling with debt. We’d started renting a house and didn’t even have enough for a deposit so we had to take out a loan.
"Then there was the furniture we needed too and loans extended. Our money management was terrible.” The couple also confided that TikTok did not come naturally to both of them as Cat described herself as an 'introvert' while Shaun had no problem at all in giving it a go to earn some more cash.
Cat explained: “I was embarrassed and I struggled with confidence. Putting myself out there didn’t come naturally.”
When asked where his inspiration came from to start his own channel, Shaun said it was Belarusian-American entrepreneur, Gary Vee who motivated him to begin his TikTok career in 2019. Shaun recalled: “He said TikTok was going to be the next big thing and he was right.
“There was no money in it to start with. But in the back of our minds we realised the bigger picture and what could happen and would likely happen if TikTok took off.” Their first videos involved pranking one another when Shaun pretended to Cat that he had purchased her a brand new Audi only for her to find out it belonged to his brother.
Cat got her partner back by placing an insect underneath Shaun's cookie which was popular amongst viewers. Cat said: “I think once the views started coming we realised we were onto something good.
Shaun added: “Essentially – find something you’re really passionate about and then document it. If you enjoy it you will be more inclined to make a career out of it.
"There are lots of people online who make 20 times more money making videos on what they do than they do in the actual job. Cat interjected: "You do have to stay consistent with it though. If I didn’t post every day it wouldn’t work."
As the blogger couple became more popular, they were subject to a lot of internet trolls who accused them of being inauthentic. It only got worse in 2021 when the parents briefly split but then announced they were getting back together months later after Shaun paid off the mortgage.
They received a lot of online hate that claimed they faked their break-up for attention and money and were forced to film a viral reunion video to clear things up. Cat said: "During Covid me and Shaun had both been working from home and we drove each other insane.
"We worked and lived together all day every day and it did take a toll on our relationship. For almost a year I didn’t really do social media, my views dropped a lot, and my money started to go down.
"I then hit a really bad depressive episode. Shaun suggested that we film together as friends, which we started to do, and then we got the massive backlash about it all being fake.
"It isn’t fake at all – the truth is that we’ve found fun in each other again. We have got new hobbies and make sure we’re honest about having time away from each other. Our relationship is really healthy now.”
Cat said the negative comments were hurtful mostly because they made a conscious effort to share their real emotions on channels. She said: “We’ve always wanted to show people that we have struggles and we’re not showing off all the time.
"We wanted to present ourselves as real people and show our real lives. Although the couple shared it's not just strangers who have been critical of the pair, it's also been some of their old friends who have now turned their backs on them after their new internet careers.
Shaun said. “We knew that would happen. I knew people were talking about us [when we started making money on TikTok] – even people close to us at the time would say things I’d never repeat. I just try to let it go over my head and let the results do the talking.
The parents say however that their main priority is their fans and remaining positive about all the support they receive from them. Cat proudly said: “A lot of people in lockdown said they lived to watch our videos and we like to concentrate on that.
"We had a lot of messages from people struggling mentally too saying how much we’ve helped them. It’s surprising the impact our content has had on others.”
The humble couple also said they have no intention of buying a 'million-pound mansion dream home' anytime soon as their priorities lie with their family who live here and their two sons who attend school locally. Shaun said: " We could never have dreamt of owning a four-bedroom house when we were in all that debt not that long ago.”
Cat wisely said: “Yes I could go and get a big house and live a life of luxury but what if social media was to go tomorrow and we lost it all?” When asked if they ever regret giving up normality to document their entire lives for money, Shaun replied: “I wondered whether I’d regret leaving my job because I loved the job and I knew that things would get better after the pandemic but I’ve not regretted it a single bit.
"We have freedom of life. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done. Yes you can find it cringey, I find myself cringey sometimes watching the videos back, but to think of how our lives have changed makes it all worth it.”
