Love is in the air this week with couples celebrating Valentine’s Day on Thursday, but if you were to receive that surprise, romantic proposal with a £1 ring, would you be saying yes or no?
That was the question posed by BBC’s The One Show as they interviewed shoppers in Stevenage for last night’s show about Poundland’s engagement rings which have gone on sale.
The rings were met with a mixed reaction, with one shopper telling the show: “If I found out it was a pound afterwards I’d be like cheapskate”, while another said they’d cry when they were told about the price.
Others believed the cost didn’t matter.
“It depends if you’re materialistic or not. With me I wouldn’t really care how much, it’s the thought counts. That’s what matters more to me,” said one woman.
Another said: “I don’t think it’s important at all, it’s the feeling behind it.”
One man wasn’t fooled by where the ring had come from, though.
“They are very nice, I thought you’d bought it in Poundland as I’d seen them in there the other day. They are amazing aren’t they,” he said.
When asked what his wife’s reaction would be if he bought the ring for her, he joked: “She’d have hit me! The box is worth a pound.”
The ring stirred up debate in The One Show studio, with guest and journalist Stacey Dooley saying: “I don’t mind that at all actually.”
Host Alex Jones believed that it was important to be open about the price.
“If someone is open that it is a pound, I think that’s lovely.
“It’s something to hold until you get the proper one – but if you found out 10 years later that it was a pound, I’d be annoyed.”
Fellow host Matt Baker argued that the price shouldn’t matter, saying: “The point is, for me, it’s a celebration of the fact that you’ve made this commitment to each other and the ring is kind of irrelevant.
“It’s the fact that you are there as a couple and showing everyone in public that you’ve got this commitment.”
Poundland offer three different ring styles to choose from, with a silver stone, a blue marquise stone and a red heart.
Will you be heading out to pick up a £1 engagement ring for your other half?
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