Billionaire bridezilla influencer Katherine Asplundh shares defiant post that also reveals update in battle to seize other user's Instagram name
The billionaire bride who tried to bully a powerless namesake into giving up her Instagram handle looks to be putting the scandal behind after posting to the platform under her maiden name.
Influencer Katherine Asplundh discovered that her influence only extended so far after finding that her new married name was already taken by another Instagram user ahead of her wedding in May to Pennsylvania billionaire Cabot Asplundh.
She deleted her account after her increasingly aggressive demands for the handle @katherineasplundh were revealed by her namesake, and outraged netizens scooped up every possible name variation to put them out of her reach.
But the young College of Charleston grad seems to have resigned herself to posting under her maiden name, after uploading some cheerful shots from her first summer as a married woman.
She grins broadly in one revealing shot as her billionaire beau clutches her, while she clutches a large white wine, under the caption 'Summer lately'.
Influencer Katherine Asplundh updated followers with a picture of her in a cuddle with her new husband, the billionaire Pennsylvania tree-chopping heir Cabot Asplundh, 27
After the happy couple exchanged vows, the new Asplundh reached out another to woman of the same name in hopes of purchasing a new Instagram account name
The loved-up couple are pictured behind the wheel of a speedboat in another amid an assortment of dogs, horses, friends, beaches and country houses.
She first reactivated her account in June after attending her brother-in-law Carl's wedding, where he married his longtime partner of five years, Savanna Smith.
'Special day celebrating Carl and Savanna,' her Instagram story caption read, with a picture of the happy couple kissing during their marriage ceremony.
But it was posted to her old handle @katherinedrisc, created under her maiden name Katherine Driscoll.
Throughout the scandal she continued to post on her TikTok account @lostetiquette, but she was accused of hypocrisy when internet users dug up an old TikTok of hers mocking new wives who can't wait to update their name on social media.
'Something that low key bothers me is when girls get married and it's not even like 10 minutes after they do their vows and they're like 'Oh! going on my Instagram! Let me change my last name already,' Katherine said in the now-deleted post.
She then says she's 'probably going to wait a couple of months' to change her name.'
'I just think it's a little bit a lot when I see girls change it before I even knew they were f***ing married, like chill,' Katherine ironically explained.'
Despite her rant about new wives, Katherine contacted Kate, owner of her desired IG handle asking if she could buy it, which is actually a violation of the platform's terms of service.
The young pair looked happy and loved-up in the shots posted under the title 'Summer lately'
In reaching out to the woman known only as Kate, who has since shared the messages on social media, the newlywed unintentionally went viral
Asplundh then continues to question the legitimacy of her name, who confirms she is not American
Kate refused and explained how she feared selling the username would get her 'banned from Instagram'.
This prompted Katherine to launch a tirade against her.
Kate claims she was initially open to changing her username but decided against doing so after Katherine 'came off snarky,' later shared the exchange online.
In the now-viral exchange, Katherine starts by asking if she can buy the Instagram handle.
'Hi I was wondering if I could purchase your username from you,' she wrote. 'Just got married and this in my new name!'
Kate replied: 'That's my name too. I just googled and it said selling my username would get me banned from Instagram.'
But Katherine pushed back, saying: 'I purchased my username in the past actually that's not true. Celebrities do it all the time that's how they all have their handles as their full names.
'So weird, I didn't know there was another Asplundh's family out there. There [are] no Katherine Asplundh in our family.'
She then adds: 'I see that you're not that active on here but started Instagram in 2018 but changed your username three times? Is there anyway I can get you to change your username one more time?'
Kate responds, explaining that the @katherineasplundh account is her so-called 'finsta', a term that refers to a 'fake' or secondary account that users create to share content just with close friends and family.
The conversation turns sour, with Katherine seemingly questioning Kate's identity.
'I actually don't believe that your name is Katherine Asplundh who would make their finsta their actual name?' Katherine wrote.
'I reported you to Instagram and they're actually able to tell me your real name I really hope I don't know you because that's gonna be really embarrassing for you.'
Asplundh (second from right) seems to have put the scandal behind her in her latest posts
The family that she married into founded Asplundh Tree Expert, which in 2021 reported revenue of over $5.4 billion dollars
Cabot proposed to her in Mantoloking, New Jersey two years after they met
Kate eventually told Asplundh that if she had been nice about it, she would have considered giving her the account name for free
Kate asked the influencer to report her, but Katherine confirmed that she and her new husband have already done so.
Katherine then continued to question the legitimacy of Kate's name, alleging that her husband's family are the only Asplundhs in the US.
Kate confirmed she is not American, to which Katherine replies: 'Do you have proof that this is your name? Would love to see that.'
Kate then told Katherine that if she had been nice about it, she would have considered giving her the account name for free.
She hit back at the influencer, saying: 'But you weren't. I reported you for asking me to sell my account and another for harassing me. Have a good day.'
Speaking to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Kate told the outlet: 'I was open to giving her my username.
'I just didn't want to sell it because that would get me banned. After I replied to her, her messages came off snarky so I told myself, 'OK, this isn't worth it'.'
According to her social media pages, Katherine is originally from New Vernon, New Jersey, having studied at College of Charleston.
Her TikTok page, named Lost Etiquette, boasts over 88,000 followers with over 6.2 million likes on her profile.
The family that she married into founded Asplundh Tree Expert, which in 2021 reported revenue of over $5.4 billion dollars.
The tree trimming company was founded by three brothers from Sweden - Lester, Griffith and Cabot's great grandfather Carl Asplundh.
Cabot's father Chris Asplundh is currently the company's CEO.
Katherine and Cabot met in Prague while Katherine was studying aboard and connected over growing up at the Jersey Shore, according to their wedding website.
Two years later, Cabot proposed to her in Mantoloking, New Jersey.
Their extravagant wedding registry included a $600 blender and cash donations for their St Bart's honeymoon, as well as for furnishing their home.
Former Senate candidate and celebrity surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz is part of the family by marriage, with his wife Lisa's grandfather cofounding the family business in 1928 with his two brothers.
Celebrity fitness expert Tracy Anderson is also married into the family after she wed Chris Asplundh in 2015.
Katherine is seen with her wedding party at her recent nuptials in Florida
The company, which maintains trees for electric utilities, municipalities and others, is run by the third generation of Asplundhs and owned by nearly 200 family members, who are collectively worth at least $3 billion, according to Forbes.
Kate, who told The Inquirer only that her name was Katherine J. Asplundh, shared the exchange onto Reddit, telling the outlet: 'The whole thing just seemed silly and ridiculous to me. I thought they'd have a laugh and that would be it.'
One user commented: 'Legitimately insane behavior 'I don't believe that's your name' HUH?!?!.'
Another posted: 'The pivot from hey girly to let me see your birth certificate gave me whiplash.'
While another said: 'Omg this is crazy- she married into a billionaire family and is acting like they're the only ones allowed to have that last name wtf.'
Since then, Katherine's social media pages have been filled with comments and she reportedly had to privatize her page, before making it public again.
According to Instagram, users are forbidden from buying, selling, or transferring 'any aspect of your account'.
Asplundh and Cabot met in Prague while she was studying aboard and connected over growing up at the Jersey Shore, according to their wedding website
Katherine Asplundh, formerly Driscoll, married Cabot Asplundh, 27, at a reception in Palm Beach, Florida
Despite this, an investigation by Vox shone the light on an entire economy of people selling and buying names on dedicated online marketplaces.
Social media handles are supposed to be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis but in some cases celebs have used their influence to pass these rules.
In 2019, Kevin Keiley of West Sussex claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle took his @sussexroyal handle.
Instagram said that the account name being reassigned was due to Keiley's being inactive.
