‘Singing kartero’ back for Valentine’s

MANILA, Philippines - Even in a high-tech, gadget-crazy world, nothing beats the old-fashioned way of expressing love on Valentine’s Day for many Filipinos.

It is for this reason that the Philippine Postal Corp. (PhlPost) has decided to revive the “singing kartero” – postmen who deliver love letters and bouquets accompanied by love songs.

Clients can choose from a list of pre-selected mix of old and new love songs that they would want the postman to sing for their special someone. Among the choices are classic hits “Always,” “Beautiful In My Eyes,” and today’s latest music like Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud.”

Eric Tagle, PHLPost marketing management and support services manager, said they intend to bring the love, music and the kilig factor to Filipinos through this Valentine’s Day promotion, which runs from Feb. 9 to 14.

PHLPost believes their Valentine treat would be a hit since Filipinos are known to be romantics and music lovers.

Tagle said PHLPost’s offering “basically aims to romanticize the sending of letters. It is really different when you receive actual love letters and at the same time there is that additional kilig if the mail sender has someone to sing your favorite song or the theme song of your love story.”

The post office decided to revive the project after an unexpected discovery.

Tagle said that during the celebration of the PHLPost anniversaries and Christmas parties, they discovered that their letter carriers can carry not only mails and parcels but also a tune. They then decided to capitalize on these talents and turn postmen into “singing karteros.”

The “singing karteros” would be operational even on Saturday, on which day this year Valentine’s Day falls. However, Tagle suggested that those who would want to avail of the service book in advance so that management could plan ahead.

On Feb. 14, PHLPost will be imposing a cut-off time. The post office would only accept delivery orders for Rizal, Bulacan and Cavite up to 10 a.m.; the entire Metro Manila up to noon; and Manila at 2 p.m.

But since most Valentine dates happen at night, Tagle said PHLPost would make allowances and may extend operational hours up to nighttime to satisfy clients.