Preposal is a new online service founded by Lucinda Dabbs in South Africa that helps your partner surprise you with the engagement ring of your dreams. Her newly launched platform allows you to create a profile and you’ll be guided through a set of questions to help you narrow down the specifics of your perfect engagement ring. Then, when it’s time to propose, your partner simply logs in on their side and downloads your Preposal mood board. This single-page tool contains all the information and vocabulary they need to confidently make this life-changing purchase. Thanks to Preposal, you can say yes to them and to your dream piece of jewellery.
Preposal is the brainchild of jewellery designer Lucinda Dabbs (who has seen one too many people struggling to get their engagement proposals right, with the right ring). Her newly launched Preposal platform makes sure that when they go down on one knee, they’re holding a ring you can commit to for life as well. Create your Preposal profile and you’ll be guided through a set of questions that help you narrow down the specifics of your perfect engagement ring. There’s a lot more to think about than carats and colour, so Preposal walks you through stone shapes and metals; how to measure your size to the exact millimeter; and what to keep in mind when choosing a setting (for example, have you considered how it will fit against your wedding band?). All done? Share your profile with your partner, your mother or your future wedding party. Then, when it’s time to propose, your partner simply logs in on their side and downloads your Preposal mood board. This powerful, single-page tool contains every detail they’ll need to get your ring just right. They can forward it straight to their jeweller or use it to confidently shop around for quotes.
Speaking about what makes Preposal different in the marketplace, Lucinda says:
“After spending over nine years in the jewelry industry from starting my own jewelry line and brand to designing for other international brands as well as leading a USA jewelry company from B2B to B2C. I noticed the same questions from clients with the same issues arising over and over. I wanted to see a change in the industry that would benifit all and realized I needed to take the industry by the horns and make this change happen. It's the only service of its kind. It’s the moments before the proposal. The pre - posal. Hence the name; Preposal. I noticed there was a breakdown in communication when women were sharing what they wanted for their engagement rings with their partners and what their partners were asking the jeweler for. I quickly narrowed it down to terminology. Naturally, if you don’t know what it’s called ( claw shapes, setting styles, stone cuts) you can’t ask for it correctly. I also wanted to equip the partner so they could have the confidence to ask the jeweler for exactly what they wanted and feel more in control of the purchasing process. So it’s basically Pinterest for engagement rings. A one - page doc ‘ cheat sheet’ with all the information about the dream ring ( ring size included! Don’t even get me started on that hack) I wanted to allow people to wear their dream ring from the moment they say Yes. Some people don’t know that any small change comes at a cost and sometimes the whole ring needs to be remade. You can imagine how frustrating that is after you have just spent a large sum of money and need to spend 40% more. There is no option to add stone size or metal carat as this is fully determined by the partners budget. So I thought about it from both sides to meet everyone’s needs. After all, it's the start of a beautiful partnership!”
Speaking about the newly launched Preposal platform, Lucinda says:
“Preposal is about streamlining the engagement ring buying process and equipping the person proposing with the knowledge and terminology to make a confident purchase. The proposal itself becomes a surprise again, too, rather than going ring-shopping as a couple, which can take the romance and spontaneity out of everything. But at the same time, your partner doesn’t have the stress of trying to secretly gather information – which usually leads to getting it wrong. And when you do say ‘yes!’, you can wear your dream ring immediately. It’ll be exactly what you want without having to change anything and, importantly, it’ll be the right size – imagine, after the excitement of being proposed to, you can’t even wear your ring because it’s too big or, worse, too small.”
Lucinda adds:
‘Ideally, you don’t ever want to have to have a ring resized anyway, because the structure and form change and the stones may not be as secure. Often, it’s not a case of resizing but of starting from scratch, which can be really expensive after you’ve just spent a fortune on the original ring. You can set up your Preposal profile at any time, whether you’re on the cusp of getting engaged or you’re single and dreaming of your happily ever after. To get started, go to www.preposal.me, or follow @pre.posal on Instagram for more ring-spiration.
In terms of her aspirations for Preposal, Lucinda says:
“I hope to help jewelers and customers alike. Equipping the customer with enough technical knowledge to comfortably and confidently make this life changing purchase. For the jewelers ( often one man bands) to not run at a loss when changes need to be made to the ring as they feel uncomfortable explaining a small change doesn't mean a small fee. Ironing out the whole engagement ring purchasing process for everyone. At the moment I am looking to create awareness through social media and get users on to the site. This will help me see how they navigate the site and also allow me to start a directory where I will host South African jewelers putting them in touch with new clients in their area. Our industry took a massive knock during Covid and I believe Preposal can breathe air back into the lungs of jewelry studios that don't see light at the end of the tunnel and are thinking of closing their doors. Sometimes it just takes a helping hand to give someone hope.”
To find out more about Preposal, contact Lucinda Dabbs via email: hello@preposal.me or visit the Preposal website and Instagram page: