STOCKHOLM, Feb. 28, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- After nearly 20 years together, Kirstin thought it was time to pop the question. In a romantic restaurant with hidden cameras, extras and artist performances, she got down on her knee and asked her unsuspecting boyfriend Mads to marry her. 

- "We've been together for about half our lives. I think Mads would like to propose to me, but since he hasn't done it by now, I can't wait any longer. I had to take the matter into my own hands", says Kirstin Hermansen.

Eight percent involved in courtship on the anniversary

According to The Knot, only 5 percent of proposals are made by women. Still the search online for "woman proposes to men ideas" increased 336 percent from 2017 to 2018 according to data from Pinterest. 

Traditionally, the leap day, February 29, has been the one day every four years where women are "allowed" to propose to men according to tradition. And since breaking old and outdated traditions is deeply rooted in Klarna's company values, the leading Swedish shopping provider worked together with Kirstin to set the stage for a proposal before the actual leap day - on February 19.

- "When I learned that Klarna was looking for a woman that wanted to break the leap day tradition and propose, I immediately signed up. For a while now I've been considering to proposing, and playing with the idea in my mind, and when I saw Klarna's Story post on Instagram, it was the kick I needed to actually do it. I applied and told my story, and was very happy when I was chosen to be part of this. It is something I really wanted to do", says Kirstin.

See video of the proposal here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8ifqpHNaNM

Hidden camera, extras and a custom song

The whole evening was set up with surprises and hidden cameras to capture Kirstin Hermanssons big proposal to her man, Mads Gudim Burheim. It all happened at a restaurant in Oslo, and included dozens of extras at the scene, including artist Anna Jæger, who performed a song tailor-made for the couple and the proposal. As Kirstin goes down on her knees holding out the ring and proposes, Mads is completely mesmerized.

 - "Honestly. This is something that I never expected. I have never been so surprised. I was totally caught off guard", says Mads about the romantic turn their dinner took.

- "According to our survey, almost one in five Norwegians believe that women should either not propose at all, or that it is only suitable on the leap day once every four years. We firmly believe that is a hopelessly outdated view, and that just like Kirstin, anybody should be able to propose to whoever they want whenever they want", says Thomas Elvestad, Marketing Director of Klarna Norway.

Nine out of ten proposals get a yes, but not all proposals are romantic

To those who are planning to propose, Klarna's survey shows that the chance of getting a positive answer is actually really high if you dare to throw yourself into it. As many as nine out of ten people who ask the question get that "YES" they are hoping for. Although when it comes to romantic performance however, there is room for improvement. Only 44 percent that have been proposed to thought their proposal was romantic.

About Klarna

We make shopping smoooth. With Klarna consumers can buy now and pay later, so they can get what they love today. Klarna's offering to consumers and retailers include payments, social shopping, and personal finances. Over 200,000 merchants, including H&M, Adidas, IKEA, Expedia Group, Samsung, ASOS, Peloton, Abercrombie & Fitch, Nike and AliExpress have enabled Klarna's innovative shopping experience online and in-store. Klarna is the most highly valued fintech in Europe with a valuation of $5.5bn and one of the largest private fintechs globally. Klarna was founded in 2005, has over 2,700 employees and is active in 17 countries. For more information, visit klarna.com.

For additional information, please contact:
Thomas Elvestad
Marketing Director Klarna Norway
Press@klarna.com or thomas.elvestad@klarna.com
+47-932-51-163

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SOURCE Klarna Bank AB (publ)