CEBU CITY—Its mission is to be the No. 1 mattress company in this part of Asia but, first, Uratex Foam has to curtsy to the Queen City of the South. Enlisting Matteo Guidicelli, a proud native son, is a clever move toward endearing itself to the famously hard-to-impress Visayas market.
Picking the matinee idol to be an endorser of Uratex is a first for the brand. “We are a 50-year-old brand and people might think we are old. But we are very innovative and we need to deliver the message that we are ready for the next 50 years. We need a fresh face for Uratex and we feel that Matteo personifies our brand,” explained Peachy Medina, Uratex managing director.
As it celebrates its golden year, Uratex is already looking forward to the next 50 years, striving to remain true to the mandate and mantra of its founder, Robert G. Cheng: “We will not stop until we give every Filipino a comfortable and affordable mattress to lie on.”
On Sunday afternoon, Matteo enjoined his fellow Cebuanos to experience the benefits of his chosen mattress brand, which has a bedroom showcase by SM Home at the Northwing Atrium at SM City Cebu. It’s also a special way for Uratex to honor its department store partner SM, which is celebrating its 60th year.
“People underestimate what a mattress can do. The Uratex mattresses are very interesting. They’re a one-time buy and you can use them for a long time,” the BisDak (Bisayang Dako, or true-blue Bisaya) said.
The
Bagani and
Single Single: Love Is Not Enough star is featured in the brand’s “The One” campaign launched via a TV commercial at the event.
“‘The One’ is about better sleep, the value of sleep, and how Uratex can be your right partner. Matteo, like Uratex, strives for excellence. He’s good in any role or any field he chooses. He’s a good representative of the youth of today—smart, confident and athletic. He’s also trustworthy, a quality that our brand is known for,” Medina added.
“Sleeping is important. I can’t emphasize it enough. I think sleep is one of the important things in life,” Matteo said when I met him weeks before his introduction as the brand’s main man. “People underestimate the importance of sleep because people are hardworking, they just go and go. They think sleeping for one or two hours or one night can make
bawi for the loss of sleep for a whole week. I don’t think that’s true.”
So, how does the former karting racer balance acting, singing and triathlon? “I don’t,” he laughed. “That’s my manager. Star Magic takes care of my calendar. They fix my schedule and they organize it very well. They know that at work, I have a cutoff at 2 am, with enough time to go to the next taping.”
“Whenever I’m in a
teleserye, my life changes for six months or a year or two. So sleep becomes more important. You have to feel comfortable and at home in your bed,” the charming actor said.
Any special sleeping rituals? “I have a lot of pillows—maybe six or seven around me—because I move a lot. I would love to have scented candles but I sleep good all the time.”
Do you still sleepwalk and sleep talk?
“How did you know?” He seemed shocked. I told him I read it somewhere. “I sleepwalked a lot when I was a kid. Sleep talk a lot, until I was about 15 or 16. Then the [somnambulism] just stopped,” the 28-year-old chuckled.
How do you deal with stress?
“I sleep. I run. I bike. I swim. When you’re stressed, your mind is full because of work, of life. Have a good night’s sleep and run 10 kilometers—and you’re brand new after that,” said the half-Italian heartthrob. Having Uratex, Matteo strongly believes, gives him the benefits of a good night’s sleep.
“We are the Sleep Specialist, so what we want is to espouse and teach the Filipino consumer why we have to value sleep. Because Matteo is such an influencer, he will be able to tap the mind-sets of the millennials, GenXers, across all demographics, that sleep is important and they could start this healthy way of living so that when they wake up in the morning, they feel fresh, alive and they can perform well,” said Cherry Wong-Tan, Uratex marketing director.
Each product—whether a pillow or mattress—is made using Uratex Quali-5 Cellular Technology.
It is a collection of five qualities and technologies that ensure all foams the company produces are of high and world-class quality: strong adherence to quality, ISO 9001 accreditation, state-of-the-art equipment and machinery, world-class formulation and process engineering technology, and usage of best raw materials.
“When I first met you, I knew you were The One for me.
Kumportable ako sa ’yo,” Matteo swoons in his TV commercial, like how a boy-next-door tries to be seductive, while caressing his Uratex Classic mattress and pillow. “
Sa ’yo ko lang na-feel
ito. Ikaw lang ang perfect
para sa akin.”
