How two sisters built a successful business on romantic ideals

Those who complain that the age of romance is dead should take a closer look at how Tiffany and her sister Amanda Brown have built a thriving business on helping people tell their partners how much they love them.

From setting up the ideal date or buying the perfect birthday present, to arranging a memorable anniversary dinner or even organising a gospel choir to provide the backing to a marriage proposal… the sisters’ business can make it an occasion that will never be forgotten.

The pair set up The One Romance in London in 2012, eight years after Tiffany graduated from the University of the West of England, Bristol (UWE Bristol). It was the perfect background, she says, not only for appreciating the poetry of romance but also being able to stage-manage a big occasion.

After graduating Tiffany had a successful spell working in journalism and PR, using skills that she has since harnessed to market the enterprise with great success. The company has achieved coverage in top newspapers and magazines and has been profiled on a host of TV and radio shows – including their own television programme.

Tiffany and Amanda’s clients have been asking for more and more elaborate (and expensive) events to be staged. “Perhaps the most extreme,” says Tiffany, “was to recreate a Russian snow scene for someone – in an English country estate, in the middle of summer…”

She had originally established a proposals business, but clients kept coming back for help on anniversaries and birthdays, making her realise that she could develop a much broader business base and retain loyal clients.

But how did the whole thing start?

Both of them, she says, had learned the value of romance in their own relationships, from things that had gone right as well as wrong, and wanted to enable others to enjoy the most positive experiences possible. The overwhelming majority of their clients are men.

“Often it’s just a matter of them feeling awkward,” says Tiffany. “Once you start to chat, they come up with great ideas – but are unconfident about making it happen. So that’s what we can do… even if it’s recreating a scene from Love Actually or Pride and Prejudice, or arranging a 40-strong choir, musicians, dancers or the cast of Les Misérables to stage something spectacular.”

And if it all goes horribly wrong, and the person says “no” to an elaborately staged marriage proposal, possibly with lots of people looking on?

“It’s never happened yet,” says Tiffany. “We do our research very thoroughly, and we’ve turned down opportunities to stage a proposal where we thought that the relationship hadn't reached that point.”

While Tiffany stage-manages the events, bringing in a trusted raft of outside suppliers as and when they are needed, her older sister Amanda makes sure the business end of things – not least the finances – are managed properly.

With Valentine’s Day looming, the sisters are currently working hard to stage-manage a whole series of dates and proposals… and as it’s a leap year, several of their current clients are ladies.

“It’s a hugely rewarding business to be in,” she says. “Because you get to give people a wonderful memory they will never forget.”