A dad-of-three has given up his work as a builder to become a full-time TikTok star.
Nick Smith, from south east London, has racked up almost two million followers on TikTok by sharing hilarious videos of him and his family.
The 33-year-old content creator shares clips of the family’s everyday lives from sweet personal moments, to sketches, and pranks.
As well as TikTok, the family has also found great success on their other social media accounts, MyLondon reports.
The combined success has allowed Nick to step away from his building business to focus on social media full time.
Nick, who did not disclose exactly how much the family now earn, said their presence on Facebook alone is paying more than he was earning through his building work.
“People like to see the wacky stuff we get up to”, he said.
“We do a lot of pranks and silly content but also do a lot of anti-bullying. We don’t have one set thing, it’s just whatever we’re up to that day.”
“It’s more enjoyable to be at home with my family”, he said.
“So instead of having a bad year we’ve probably had the best year of our lives.”
Nick, who has ADHD, said during lockdown he found it very hard to keep focused, so was posting about 15 TikToks a day to keep him in a routine.
He said: “It kept me from having to think of new things to do with the kids during lockdown, and kept it solid at home.”
On the family TikTok account @thesmithyfamily, Nick regularly posts videos of himself and his partner Jess Farthing, 30.
The couple have two daughters, Amelia, six, and Isabella, nine, and have another child on the way in June.
Jess’ half-brother Jack, 16, is a regular feature in the family's videos, as is Nick’s son Ben, 13, who lives with the family some of the time.
Nick joined TikTok back in December 2019 after his daughter said he was 'too embarrassing' and told him he was not allowed to do TikToks with her anymore, so he started his own account.
Since then the account has grown massively and the family are now sharing their lives with 1.9 million followers.
“The kids love it”, Nick said. “It’s glued us as a family.”
“Two years ago I was so deep in work and worried about trying to make sure everyone was alright, make sure money was coming in, and working seven days a week. And now I’m at home and we’ve bonded as a family again.
“It's done the world of good for us as a family.”
With videos racking up millions of views, the family have also used their platform for good by collecting around £60,000 worth of gifts for the Salvation Army over Christmas.
The family, who have recently released their own merchandise, are now looking forward to the future and intend to continue with a career in social media.
Nick also revealed that he is in the early stages of creating an 11,000 square ft 'content warehouse' where he, and eventually other creators, can film in.
He intends for the space to have a filmset-style house, a massive ball pit, ziplines and an electric go-kart track.
In addition to this being a space for content creators he hopes to be able to host charity days where those who are less fortunate can go to enjoy the space.
Nick said: “We know that social media can be a place where people come and go, but we enjoy the environment.
“So even if we go, we want to still be in a place where we can get other creators down and be part of something.”
Follow the family on TikTok: @thesmithyfamily & Facebook: @ thesmithyfamily
