Rocksbox President Allison Vigil shared the retailer’s expansion plans, and her thoughts on opening stores in malls.
Propose Too: A Platform That Wants Women to Pop the Question
Engagement 101 Founder Severine Ferrari dishes on the revolution she’s trying to ignite around proposals and what it could mean for jewelry.

Marriage has changed a great deal in the modern world. With the marriage equality movement, more people are allowed to get married, and with living together before marriage no longer stigmatized, more people are waiting longer to say ‘I do.’
And yet the tradition of proposing for straight couples—in particular, who is expected to take charge to pop the question—has not evolved along with it.
Now, Engagement 101 wants to help bring the tradition of the proposal into the 21st century and tip the scales towards women’s empowerment by bringing the suitor into the spotlight.
The brainchild of Engagement 101 founder and Editor Severine Ferrari, “Propose Too” is an initiative intended to update the proposal tradition to match today’s societal norms and to start the conversation around who’s proposing: namely, to encourage women to propose first or propose back.
“In the past five years, the biggest revolution in the proposal planning world has been that women have become very involved in the engagement ring selection and purchase. In parallel, in larger cities, more and more women are getting married/engaged in their late 30s,” she said.
“Truth be told, it’s already happening behind closed doors, and the more these stories will be shared through our platform, the more it will convince other women to do the same.”
Since Propose Too launched, she said more women who proposed to their boyfriends—many of whom previously would not release their names and pictures for publication—have become open to sharing their stories.
Ferrari herself popped the question to her now-fiancé and documented the occasion for readers on Propose Too.
When asked whether she was influenced by the initiative or if the initiative was influenced by her own action, she said it went both ways.
“My relationship is an equal partnership and my boyfriend is a feminist, so we both decided to get engaged. Then while my ring was being made, I was working on launching the movement so I decided to propose first.”
Multimedia is a huge part of the initiative, particularly since Engagement 101’s audience connects the most with the
For this reason, sharing all kinds of content on social media is key for the campaign.
“We are starting a conversation,” Ferrari said, “and we want it to go viral.”
Engagement 101 has produced videos for the past 10 years, but Ferrari said she wanted to come up with fresh content just for Propose Too that could show how romantic a woman proposing to a man could be.
Engagement 101 Director Lisa Hammer, who also proposed to her now-husband, came up with short movie called “Double Proposal,” posted on its YouTube channel.
Ferrari said she intends to make more short rom-coms this year with Hammer and other female directors. Propose Too also features unique content, research and testimonials.
Adding to the question of why straight men are still expected to be the ones to propose in 2018, Engagement 101 also is questioning why women are the only ones wearing engagement jewelry.
To counter that, she collaborated with jewelry designer Chris Ploof and others to create a special line of products sold on the website that were designed for the woman to return or initiate the gesture of a proposal.
When it came to making jewelry for the man to wear as an indication of his commitment prior to the wedding day, Ferrari said she wanted to look beyond the “mangagement ring,” which has gained little traction.
So she worked with Ploof to create unique merchandise to signify the male engagement.
“I approached Chris Ploof (the metal master, I like to call him) with the idea and I love the pendant he made. James, my fiancé, never takes it off. We decided to collaborate together to offer a version of the pendant for sale to inspire other women to propose back or first this engagement season.”
Ploof and Ferrari designed a proposal pendant that the bride-to-be can gift to her suitor after he says yes or that can be used to initiate the proposal.
It’s a reversible dog tag-style pendant in stainless steel featuring an “Engaged” engraving on one said and a 1.5 mm diamond on the other ($99).
“Making these Propose Too pendants is an amazing feeling,” Ploof said. “To challenge and change social norms and to be able to help a couple celebrate the very first steps in their union is truly special.”

Additional Propose Too merchandise includes a cotton “I Put A Ring On It” T-shirt ($25) and a Propose Too pin bundle by Engagement 101 x Pizza Ships ($29).
Ferrari said she hopes that, as Propose Too picks up speed, not only will she have more stories to tell of women proposing first, but also that the jewelry industry will find a way to support the movement, including coming up with more proposal jewelry options for men.
“I think retailers should talk about it with couples purchasing an engagement ring ASAP. Why not get a nice add-on sale Jewelry designers should start thinking about creating proposal jewelry for men that could work within their lines/style.”
After all, more engagements only means more opportunity.
“If everything goes according to plan, double proposals = double the jewelry,” Ferrari said. “We started this collaboration with Chris Ploof to show how it could be done one way. However, as with the engagement ring, proposal jewelry for guys could become bespoke, one-of-a-kind. A women texted me today telling me she was planning to propose with a vintage Viking ring. How cool is that?”
The Latest

The creator of the WJA Chicago chapter is remembered as a champion for women in the jewelry industry and a loving grandmother.

The decline was consistent across age groups and almost all income groups, with tariffs and inflation still top of mind.

The Seymour & Evelyn Holtzman Bench Scholarship from Jewelers of America returns for a second year.

The “Playlist: Electric Dreams” collection brings lyrics from the musician’s song, “Little Wing,” to life through fine jewelry.


The event is set for May 16-19 in Detroit, Michigan.

The Vault’s Katherine Jetter is accusing the retailer of using info she shared for a potential partnership to move into Nantucket.

The countdown is on for the JCK Las Vegas Show and JA is pulling out all the stops.

Agents seized 2,193 pieces, a mix of counterfeit Cartier “Love” and “Juste Un Clou” bracelets, and Van Cleef & Arpels’ “Alhambra” design.

The designer brought her children’s book, “The Big Splash Circus,” to life through a collection of playful fine jewelry characters.

The trade association has chosen the recipients of the funding initiative it formed to foster the growth and sustainability of the industry.

The organization has also announced this year’s slate of judges.

Lori Tucker started at Williams Jewelers when she was 18 years old.

The “Marvel | Citizen Zenshin” watch is crafted in Super Titanium and has subtle nods to all four “Fantastic Four” superheroes on the dial.

The “XO Tacori” collection was designed to blend luxury and accessible pricing.

Pritesh Patel, the lab’s chief operating officer, will take over as president and CEO of GIA.

National Jeweler and Jewelers of America discuss the standout jewelry trends and biggest news to emerge from the shows this year.

Signatories to the “Luanda Accord” committed to allocating 1 percent of annual diamond revenue to the Natural Diamond Council.

The winning designs captured the “Radiance” theme.

Nominations in the categories of Jewelry Design, Media Excellence, and Retail Innovation will be accepted through July 30.

The singer’s ring ticks off many bridal trends, with a thick band, half-bezel setting, and solitaire diamond.

The bracelet references vintage high jewelry and snake symbolism as a playful piece where a python’s head becomes a working belt buckle.

The heist happened in Lebec, California, in 2022 when a Brinks truck was transporting goods from one show in California to another.

The 10-carat fancy purple-pink diamond with potential links to Marie Antoinette headlined the white-glove jewelry auction this week.

The historic signet ring exceeded its estimate at Noonans Mayfair’s jewelry auction this week.

To mark the milestone, the brand is introducing new non-bridal fine jewelry designs for the first time in two decades.

The gemstone is the third most valuable ruby to come out of the Montepuez mine, Gemfields said.