Katherine Asplundh, an influencer on TikTok and Instagram and wife of Cabot Asplundh, one of the heirs of Asplundh Tree Expert in Willow Grove, announced her pregnancy months after an Instagram account handle scandal, the New York Post reported.
According to the story, Katherine, 27, (formerly Driscoll), married Cabot on April 27 and wanted to change her name on the platform to match her new legal name. In May, the new wife was accused of bullying an Instagram user with the same name (@katherineasplundh) in an attempt to buy her account handle.
The Philadelphia Inquirer covered the dispute in May. An excerpt:
“I was wondering if I could purchase your username from you?” Asplundh wrote. “[I] just got married and this is my new name!”
Kate responded, “Hi congrats! That’s my name too.”
Now, their private direct message spat has hit public channels, raising questions over who is entitled to an Instagram handle — and how much digital real estate is worth.
Personal branding on social media is important to content creators and online personalities — from both a sentimental and monetary standpoint. However, the space for social-centric branding is limited and becoming so scarce that people are beginning to take matters into their own hands, offering backdoor deals, a practice Instagram says could result in an account getting banned.
Asplundh, 27, shared photos alongside her husband earlier this week.
“Love this lil bump of mine. Can’t wait to make it my entire personality,” she wrote in her story.
Asplundh Tree Expert is the 109th largest private company in America with a revenue of $5.42 billion in 2023, according to Forbes. The company was founded by three brothers (Lester, Griffith and Carl Asplundh) in 1928 in Glenside and celebrated its 95th anniversary last year.
They are based at 708 Blair Mill Road and have a second location at 575 Virginia Dr E in Fort Washington.
Fun fact: Celebrity surgeon and former Senate candidate Mehmet Oz is part of the Asplundh family by marriage: His wife’s grandfather is one of the cofounders, The Inquirer said.
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Photos: Instagram