The Sunday Telegraph

Young people are ‘proposing to themselves’ instead of waiting

- By Gurpreet Narwan CONSUMER AFFAIRS EDITOR

ARE you waiting for someone to get down on one knee and pop the question with a giant rock? Really, there’s no need for all that.

Some young people who are commitment shy and not enamoured of the idea of marriage are buying fine jewellery and proposing to themselves instead.

Jewellers say an increasing number of single people have been purchasing expensive rings.

Genevieve Schwartz, an independen­t bespoke designer, said more of her clients were women making one-off birthday purchases.

“Women buying for themselves – that’s the biggest market for high-price jewellery outside of engagement rings,” she said.

“I’ve had quite a few 30th birthday commission­s. Sometimes people collect a pool of money from parents or friends for a big birthday and put it towards a ring.”

Larger retailers have also spotted the shift. John Lewis said its self-purchase ring sales have increased by 40 per cent, compared with last year, and 300 per cent since 2019. It is expanding its

‘Some people have been judgmental about my ring, but I wear it every day and think: I’m worth it’

range of high-end jewellery to cater to growing demand.

It comes at a time when young people are waiting longer before getting married. Official figures show that marriage rates for heterosexu­al couples have fallen to their lowest levels on record, with statistici­ans attributin­g this to couples choosing to cohabit for longer instead.

In recent years, a slew of celebritie­s have espoused the benefits of staying single for longer. In a 2019 Vogue interview, Emma Watson described herself as happily “self-partnered”, adding that she was once “stressed and anxious” about turning 30 because “if you do not have a husband, if you do not have a baby … There’s just this incredible amount of anxiety”.

Self-partnered shoppers said their decision to buy themselves fine jewellery was driven by the desire to remind themselves every day that they are “worth it”.

“I thought, well, no one else is buying me a solid gold and diamond ring, so it was about time I bought myself one,” said one 31-year-old woman from north London after a long stint of being single.

“My 30th birthday was the perfect excuse. I have a good job, a good salary, but no partner.

“Some people, including my parents, have been quite judgmental about my present to myself, but I wear it every day and think: I’m worth it.”

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