In this episode of Chasing the Insights, I talk to entrepreneur R.T. Custer.

R.T. talks to us about taking on the big guys as a challenger brand.

R.T. Custer is an entrepreneur, dreamer, and champion of American manufacturing. As the founder of Vortic Watch Company and Colorado Watch Company, R.T. has spent over a decade proving that high-quality watches can be made in the USA.

His companies transform antique pocket watches into modern wristwatches and produce American-made mechanical watches at scale. But his vision goes beyond watches—he’s building Vortic, Inc. to be the backbone of American watch manufacturing.

Through his American Dreamers YouTube channel, R.T. shares his journey and interviews entrepreneurs who believe in making things here—not there.

When he’s not running his companies, R.T. is a devoted father to his two sons, Sawyer and Wesley, and an advocate for small business owners and entrepreneurs who dare to take the road less traveled. He’s on a mission to show his sons exactly what his dad told him: “you can do anything you put your mind to.”