Modern Jeweler recently featured stats shared by The Knot.com about engagement ring, wedding band and wedding ring purchases. Over 9,500 brides and grooms were surveyed to relate their experiences when purchasing their bridal jewelry. Here are some of the most interesting – yet basic – findings.
• 60% of brides’ wedding bands have diamonds (BLING!).
• Only 15% of grooms’ wedding bands have diamonds (not so BLING!).
• 33% of grooms’ wedding bands are comfort fit, as opposed to only 14% for the brides
• Only 15% purchased wedding bands that match.
• 70% of brides opted for white gold bands – and white gold is not naturally white (say “hello” to my little friend “Rhodium”)
• 15% of the women surveyed bought platinum! This is down from 30% just a few years back in 2005.
• 40% of the men bought white gold wedding bands (down from 47% in 2005).
• Approximately 33% of men’s wedding bands and wedding rings are created from contemporary metals.
• 19% of all men’s wedding bands are made from tungsten.
• Only 7% of the grooms bought a platinum wedding band (down from 24% in 2005).
• 56% of the brides feel knowledgeable about the metal options available for bridal jewelry.
Only 7% bought a platinum wedding band! Get outta town! Well, the market price of platinum is higher now than it was in 2005, but not twice as much. More like a few hundred dollars more. But there was a time in between that platinum was over $2000 per ounce. Holy platinum cow! As of this post, platinum resides in the $1100 range per ounce, but gold is only $60-$100 less at times. So for just a bit more, you can get a naturally white platinum wedding band.
And as far as only 56% of the brides feel knowledgeable about the metal options available for bridal jewelry, I feel that this number should be much, much higher. Look at it this way – a wedding band, wedding ring or engagement ring can be for most a major purchase. It may even be a significant luxury purchase. Consumer behavior dictates that people tend to do a lot of research on cars, houses, fine wines, wardrobes, and even the MP3s that they buy from iTunes. But only 56% of the brides surveyed feel secure discussing their metal options? Once again, I will say it – consumers need to be educated about their metal options for wedding bands, wedding rings and engagement rings before they enter a store to make a purchase.
To learn more about The Knot’s survey, read What Brides Say About Rings....and You. It has a retail slant, but it’s very educational.
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