(IDEX Online) - Signet says it's braced for more weddings this year than any time in the last 40 years, as couples finally exchange their vows after the Covid pandemic.Gina Drosos (pictured), CEO of the world's largest diamond jewelry retailer, said there would be 2.5m nuptials in 2022, compared with the usual 1.8m to 2.2m."We know the average time between when people meet and when they get married is three years," she told the financial news network Cheddar News."But the pandemic has disrupted weddings a bit. People weren't able to have a big wedding over the last couple of years. They couldn't invite all of their friends or families. So that's pushed more weddings into this year than we've seen historically."She went on to identify two other major trends for jewelry consumers - the return to work and the growing popularity of lab grown diamonds."People can't always see your shoes, they can't see your great new bag, but they can definitely notice the jewelry that you're wearing," she said."Jewelry is a purchase to express yourself. People are excited to do that again both in person at the workplace and in virtual meetings."She said lab growns were not a big part of Signet's business yet. "But it certainly is fast growing," she said. "And lab-created diamonds are another way that customers are finding great value in an inflation year."Signet is the the world's largest retailer of diamond jewelry - parent company to Kay Jewelers, Zales, Jared, Direct, JamesAllen.com and others - and now accounts for 9.3 per cent of all jewelry sold in the US.