I recently went one on one with R.T. Custer, founder and CEO of Vortic Watch Company and Chief Vision Officer of Carter & Custer Agency.

Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?

R.T.: 2020 was harder for me than it was for most. February 19th, right before the world shut down, I had my day in Federal Court during my landmark lawsuit, Hamilton v. Vortic, which has become Vortic Watch Company’s claim to fame (now that we won). At that time, I was struggling to hold everything together — barely making payroll, not taking care of myself physically or mentally and getting sued by the largest company in my industry. I took a train to my hometown of Lancaster, PA when I finished with my legal business in NYC and said goodbye to my mom, who passed away from cancer in March of 2020. After returning home to Fort Collins, CO, I was diagnosed with one of the first cases of COVID-19 in the state (likely picking it up from my travels), and due to my stress and negligence toward my own health, it hit me hard. The first quarter of 2020 was not the first time I almost lost everything in my entrepreneurial journey, but it was the largest wake-up call I ever received. I feel so grateful for what I have now, and currently, I’m the healthiest and wealthiest I’ve ever been. I’ll never let things like that happen again, and I will always spend time with the ones I love as I know it’s so precious.

Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas?

R.T.: Vortic Watch Company salvages antique American pocket watches and turns them into one-of-a-kind wristwatches, preserving American history one watch at a time. After class one day at Penn State I played a round of golf with my friend (and now business partner) Tyler Wolfe, and we brainstormed a bunch of wristwatch-related ideas. We decided to start a watch company after college and wanted to manufacture them in America. In researching how that might be possible, we discovered that few watches are actually made in the U.S. We stumbled upon the history of what we call the “Great American Watch Companies” and realized that if we upcycled antique pocket watches made here 100 years ago, we could manufacture the easier, larger parts and be the only truly American-made watch. That’s why they call Vortic “America’s Watch Company” now.

Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea?

R.T.: We launched on Kickstarter first as a test of both our minimum viable product and product-market fit. People seemed to love the idea — random humans from around the world supported us, and we exceeded our initial fundraising goals with only word-of-mouth marketing. The advice we received was mainly that we needed to charge more and value our idea in a bigger way, so we thought that was all worth pursuing. Plus, we were making money right off the bat with crowdfunding!

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?

R.T.: Fail small and fail often. Trying and failing is better than not trying at all. We test things and try new things all the time. We just need to make sure the failures aren’t big enough to take down the whole company, and that the successes are large enough to give us cash and time to test the next thing! My advice is really just to go fast. Iterate quickly. Ask for advice from all those around you, and keep the advice (and mentors) that you see working in front of you. 

Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips?

R.T.: If you’re good at advertising, you don’t need to be good at sales. If you’re good at marketing, you don’t need to be good at advertising. If you can master branding, then marketing, advertising, and sales are all just a trickle down from there. If you want to build something big, think big — build a brand first, then get really good at marketing. Branding and marketing will carry you through hard times. If your business is completely reliant on sales or advertising dollars, it might not make it through hard times. I know this because when things got tough for us, we fell back onto our brand and used superfans in our customer base to keep us afloat. I never had to “sell,” I just asked the customers for help or told them where we were and what we needed. Vortic Watch Company’s customers aren’t just buying a watch. They are INVESTING in the future of American manufacturing. 

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?

R.T.: Leaders need to be strong, confident and tied directly to the brand and long-term vision. They cannot let day-to-day struggles or emotions hurt the energy of the whole company. You are the rock — the cornerstone of the company and the team. Everyone needs to look up to and respect you. For me, I’m always learning and my chosen educational path is with Masterminds. I join and participate in Mastermind groups to better myself and bring knowledge back to my team. Plus, I have a group of confidants and friends to ask for help if things get hard. I believe in Masterminds so much that I recently purchased a Mastermind program called Fast Foundations. It’s the one that helped me get through 2020, and is now my give-back.

Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading, and managing teams?

R.T.: “Always be hiring.” If you show up every day as the best version of yourself, treat your team as they should be treated (as you wish to be) and you’re transparent, have empathy, and act with integrity, your team will do the recruiting for you. Always act as if the next person you want to hire is in the room listening to how you’re talking to your current team. Tyler and I practice this literally as we have a YouTube channel called “Custer & Wolfe: Building a Watch Company” where we document everything we do and put it on the internet for free. All future potential employees are encouraged to watch a few episodes so they know what it’d be like to work with us, and they do. Most watch every episode and are excited to work with us!

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?

R.T.: 1. Surround yourself with people that bring you up and push you forward (join a Mastermind). 

2. Build your personal brand (document, don’t create. Put video of yourself out there so people know what it’s like to work with you before they even meet you).

3. Go to therapy (talk about your problems somewhere other than work, and don’t bring the problems home to your family, or worse, bring your personal issues into work).

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?

R.T.: “You can do anything you put your mind to.” My dad told me this when I was a kid and I’ve proven it to him and myself time and time again. And, “Plant trees under whose shade you’ll never sit.” Don’t do it for you. Do it for them. Whoever “they” are. Whatever motivates you.

Adam: Is there anything else you would like to share?

R.T.: My preferred social media channel is Instagram (@rtcuster), and I personally answer every single message. If anyone wants to connect with me, go deeper on any of these subjects, or just wants to know how I found a good therapist…I’m here to serve!


Adam Mendler is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and nationally-recognized authority on leadership. Adam is the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal-winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations. Adam has written extensively on leadership and related topics, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders. A Los Angeles native, Adam is a lifelong Angels fan and an avid backgammon player.

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