Girls buy ring bling

Successful, independent, single women are spending up to $15,000 on diamond rings as gifts for themselves.

Jewellers - especially independent boutiques offering design services - have reported a dramatic increase in the number of female customers buying directly for themselves, or playing a big part in buying an engagement ring with their partner.

The 1791 Diamonds founder, Richard Prout, said it was often a celebration of success, much the same as a male executive who bought a flashy car. His New Zealand-based export firm has reported 100 per cent growth over the past year - and the year before was strong as well.

The 1791Diamonds.com online engagement and wedding ring website was launched by the technology entrepreneur in 2008 and, with the help of social media and innovative online advertising, has already boasted millions of dollars in revenue.

"It seems as though some women buy a ring even if they don't have a partner. [An engagement ring] is the kind of ring they are buying. It seems as though they're buying it almost like 'I'm a successful woman and if I want a ring I'll buy it, I don't need a partner'."

The trend had only been noticeable in the past few years. Prout said the other noticeable change was that women were more involved in the purchase of engagement rings. "In 2007/2008, we only really heard from women when a man was buying an engagement ring 20 per cent of the time. Now it's 50 per cent."

He said he expected women were involved in the decision in another 25 per cent of cases.

Callum Chowns, who runs My Jeweller, said single, professional women often spoiled themselves with a handmade ring. He said they were usually successful in business with disposable income and were confident enough to wear a diamond ring just because they liked it.

"They usually wear it on the right hand as this avoids unnecessary explanations to friends and colleagues."

Prout, a British expat who now calls Wanaka home, said he was thrilled with how quickly his online business had grown. The 44-year-old was just 26 when he became a director of Kinesis Computing, which was later sold to PricewaterhouseCoopers for $25 million.

He is also the founder of Solution Foundry, a boutique software company specialising in automated investment and trading software.

That knowledge has helped 1791 Diamonds. Prout said the success of his new company could also be attributed to niche geo-targeting marketing software designed especially for it. The technology could target consumers in specific areas of a country and allowed it to compete with big companies on Google and Facebook.