A CEO and Founder Was Proposed to With a Flower-Shaped Engagement Ring

When Susan Korn opened her first retail store in New York City, she had no idea her future fiancé was in attendance.

The 39-year-old founder, CEO, and creative director launched her accessories brand, Susan Alexandra — now a cult favorite known for its whimsical, beaded designs — in 2014. Its first brick-and-mortar store came in 2021.

At the time, family and friends gathered to celebrate its grand opening. One guest — a friend of Korn’s who worked in fashion — brought her brother, Andy Nahman, along.

“He’d been around [my orbit],” Korn told Business Insider. “When I look back at photos of my store opening, he’s in the background.”

She and Nahman didn’t talk that night, but they connected later. And now, they’re engaged.

Here’s the story of their relationship, Nahman’s proposal, and Korn’s one-of-a-kind engagement ring, which is shaped like a flower.

A CEO, her friend’s brother, and the party that brought them together

In March 2023, a year and a half after her store opening, Korn and Nahman also both attended a mutual friend’s birthday party.

Nahman was there with his sister, who was pregnant at the time and had to leave early. That created a chance for him and Korn to finally speak one-on-one.

Korn told Business Insider she liked him instantly, describing Nahman as “a wonderful, lovely person.”

“We had both been on parallel paths, and dating in New York was such a slog — just awful and tiring,” Korn said. “We were completely burned out from the whole thing. I was happy alone and thought that was my story. Then I met him.”

The Parisian proposal

Two and a half years into their relationship, Korn half-jokingly gave Nahman “all but an ultimatum” to get engaged.

“I even put something like ‘Decide when we’re getting married’ in a calendar invite at one point,” she said. “I didn’t have a laid-back approach.”

Still, she didn’t know where they’d get engaged, or when exactly it would happen.

It was mid-September this year when the couple visited the South of France. Korn was especially excited to visit the Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence, also known as the Matisse Chapel.

When they arrived, Korn walked up to the small building and found it was closed for lunch. It wasn’t all bad, though. When she turned around, Nahman was on one knee.

“I was really shocked; like, ‘Oh my God, is this happening?’ Complete and utter disbelief,” Korn said of the moment. “He proposed, and I was like, ‘Sure! Why not?’ I didn’t know what else to say. It was really special.”

They finished the day with Champagne that Nahman had stored in their car’s trunk, and a romantic lunch at a nearby restaurant. The latter was serendipitously empty, aside from the newly engaged couple.

Love in full bloom

So, what ring do you propose to a jewelry designer with? In Korn’s case, the answer is simple: a colorful one shaped like a flower.

Prior to her engagement, Korn discovered a vintage, floral ring being sold by an antique jewelry vendor within Bergdorf Goodman. She hinted to her friends and Nahman that she was “completely in love” with the design.

“Unbeknownst to me, Andy went and looked at it,” she continued. “The ring was beautiful, but I didn’t know it was so old that it couldn’t get wet. It was super fragile. He made the executive decision that it was not a feasible thing for somebody who works with their hands to wear.”

Once it was ruled out, Nahman decided that he’d design Korn’s ring himself.

The result was a flower-shaped statement piece featuring a round diamond at its center, surrounded by smaller rubies, rubellites, and amethysts. The 14-carat gold ring also features an emerald stem and leaves.

Korn, who always envisioned herself wearing a colorful engagement ring, said she was stunned by the design.

“My job is jewelry, so I was like, ‘Tell me everything about this piece,'” she recalled saying after the proposal. “He didn’t know anything. He said he had paperwork on it and had to look.”

But even without all the details, Korn was in awe.

“It is the most fabulous thing I’ve seen, and by far, the most fancy thing I own,” Korn said. “I love fine jewelry, but I don’t have much of it. It feels very over the top to wear it, in a really special way.”

Her fiancé’s design has even inspired Korn to create some of her own engagement styles.

“Even though gold is at record high [prices] right now, I feel really drawn to the idea of designing engagement rings,” she said. “I’ll probably design something not too dissimilar from what I have. That’s my next project.”

Or, at least, it’s one of them. She also needs to find a wedding band for herself.

Korn says she’s looking into a custom band that would fit against her engagement ring like a puzzle piece. Ideally, she said, the band will feature a smaller flower that creates the look of a large cocktail ring.

As for Nahman, he’ll be taking the opposite approach.

“It’s funny because his ring will be as plain and simple as humanly possible,” Korn said. “I can’t even imagine him wearing jewelry.”