The 2020 Jewelry & Engagement Study, commissioned by The Knot, a wedding planning, and registry website, revealed that COVID-19 placed additional pressure on proposers - including limited ability to shop in person for engagement jewellery, along with planning their proposal within a shorter time frame to account for constantly evolving pandemic conditions.
The study of more than 5,000 newly engaged US individuals (who got engaged between April and November 2020) also found that ring shopping experiences looked different this year, the pandemic, state of the economy and overall uncertainty around the future did not impact engagement ring 'spends' for most to-be-weds (86 per cent).
In fact, the report found that there was minimal change to the national average cost of an engagement ring in 2020 - $5,500, compared to $5,900 in 2019. And further, the jeweller customised 48 per cent of rings.
Confronted with COVID, shopping for engagement rings for the period continued to be a two-person activity for most couples, as 72 per cent of proposees reported being involved in the selection of their engagement ring.
On the other hand 83 per cent of proposers said they felt pressure to curate a highly unique proposal in 2020 (up from 75 per cent in 2019), and nearly half of proposers had to change their original plans as a result of the pandemic, from changing the location (67 per cent) or date (63 per cent) to involving their loved ones (52 per cent).
Unsurprisingly, more people researched and shopped online for their engagement ring during COVID, however; the great majority of purchases were made at a local jewellery store.
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The Knot found that many proposers used online sources throughout the process due to health concerns, whether by increasing the amount of time spent researching engagement rings online (33 per cent), contacting jewellers via social media (11 per cent), or using virtual tools for online consultations (10 per cent).
As a result, nearly a third of US engagement rings were purchased online during the nine-month period, though the majority (63 per cent) continue to be purchased in person at either a local jeweller or chain store.
Due to social distancing guidelines and limited in-store appointments it’s understandable that store visits reduced. Proposers visited fewer retailers in 2020 (on average two, down from three in 2019) and viewed significantly fewer rings (eight, down from 15 in 2019) before selecting the preferred style.
Key Points from The Knot's 2020 Report
The Knot claims that the 2020 Jewelry & Engagement Study is the largest of its kind and was conducted last month among more than 5,000 US adults who became engaged between April and November 2020. All respondents were adults aged 18-54 and who had provided their emails to the website.
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