The new report released by a Web site committed to market research for the wedding goods industry proves that the nearest five years are expected to give a 13.4% rise in engagement and wedding ring sales in the United States.
According to TheWeddingReport.com, engagement ring spending will total $6.1 billion in America for 2008, with an additional $2 billion being spent on wedding rings. The total market value will reach $9.2 billion by 2013, a 13.4% growth over the next five years.
The vast majority of engagement and bridal rings will have diamonds, and more than two thirds will have white gold.
According to the report, December is the most popular month for engagements and Saturday is the most popular proposal day.
Most couples begin their research more than six months before their wedding. Style and cost are the factors most commonly influencing couples’ eventual purchase decision. Finally, Berkeley Lake, GA leads the way for the top growth market in engagement and wedding rings. The growth in weddings is expected at 13% and in spending at 27% over the coming five years.
According to INDEX Online’s analyst Ken Gassman, far too many merchants fail to take advantage of this sales opportunity. Just over one-fifth of all non-bridal diamond jewelry is given as an anniversary gift. With the projected increase in the number of weddings, coupled with a modest decline in the divorce rate, the number of wedding anniversaries in the U.S. is seen rising significantly over the next decade.
Jewelers who do not maintain a customer database to target customers with upcoming wedding anniversaries are missing out on a large chunk of potential business.
IDEX Online found that online diamond retailer Blue Nile appears to have captured over 4 percent of the total diamond engagement ring market in the U.S.
Blue Nile’s average ticket for a diamond engagement ring in 2007 was $6,200 (in 2006 it was $5,700). Though this is well above the industry average ($3,210 in 2006), it is in line with the average ticket for a diamond engagement ring at a guild (AGS-type) jeweler.
Engagement and wedding rings for same-sex couples are the newest trend in the bridal jewelry industry. While developing such pieces, designers are mindful of the differences between traditional and same-sex wedding ceremonies. One moth ago, we noted that among offered variations there were jewelry items styled to the so-called “gay rainbow.” The wedding of Ellen DeGeneres, a popular TV anchor woman, and Portia Rossi were in the August limelight. Portia’s engagement ring was first presented to the public at the June ceremony of Daytime Emmy Awards – a chic marquis cut diamond set with pink diamonds by designer Neil Lane. He also authored the couple’s wedding bands. In this particular case, the designer played upon yet another ginger peachy color associated with same-sex female couples – pink, the more so as the couple had chosen it for their wedding gowns.
U.S.-based D Jewelry Co. has come up with an off-beat idea for its jewelry, which gave it a chance to seize a new market segment all to itself. The company is selling rings for divorced couples. The “D” here stands for “Divorced.” This status is not commonly associated with keepsakes, but the line is about building self-esteem and symbolizing a new beginning, says Harold Thompson, company president.
“There have been comments for it and against it,” he says. One customer even told Thompson that every glimpse of her ring reminds her of the best decision she ever made.
Crafted in 14-karat gold, the defining detail is that each band contains a small separation, marking the actual physical separation in the normal “never-ending circle.”
