Long Roads

#21 Steve Laughlin (Raven Watches) - Intersect 2022, food, mid-west, travelling the world, more food, and some watches. Nov 29, 2022

In this episode, we sit down with the one, the only, Steve Laughlin from Raven Watches. Steve is a good friend of ours and we always love spending time with him. He visited last year for Intersect, and he was in town once again for Intersect this year. This podcast episode was literally what our conversations are like when we are hanging out. Most of this conversation was about food, as it is one of the passions outside of watches that ties us all together. We also discuss travels, watches, and languages. Part 2 coming soon.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#20 Nodus x Matick Blog - SectorMatick limited edition, burnout, supply chain issues Aug 19, 2022

In this episode, we video chat with Team Matick, a group of watch enthusiasts based out of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We discuss our second collaboration, the SectorMatick Pilot - a follow up to the AvaMatick, which was released in 2020 just before the pandemic shut the world down. We also talk about our burnout levels reaching all time highs, plans for the year, and plastic surgery. The SectorMatick is now available at:
https://www.noduswatches.com/collections/sector-matick

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#19 Mr. Bill Yao & Cullen Chen - WindUp SF 2022, history of Mk II, Tornek Rayville, too much wine May 03, 2022

In this episode, after a very busy weekend, we sit down with the man, the myth, the legend, Mr. Bill Yao. Some credit him as the godfather of microbrands, some say he started the Seiko modding-movement, but we credit him as being an inspiration for us to start Nodus. After the last day of WindUp, we sit in a tiny hotel room and drink too much wine to reflect on our first WindUp since the pandemic started. We also discuss the history of Tornek Rayville, tell stories from behind the curtain, and try to remember 20 years worth of MK II releases.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#18 Steve Laughlin & Cullen Chen - Intersect 2021, First Watches, Reflecting on Our Brands, Too Much Booze Dec 09, 2021

It's a long one. This time, we are going JRE-style with a long-form conversation with Steve from Raven Watches. This conversation is very wide ranging - we discuss Intersect 2021, to reflecting on our brands, traveling the world, Los Angeles, what we should do next, angry customers, and Rolex.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#17 Cullen Chen - Sector Series Launch, Intersect 2021, Strange Gen-Z Habits, Video Games Oct 21, 2021

Phew. So much has happened since April. So much more is happening between now and the end of the year. In this episode, we go over the Sector Series launch, Intersect 2021, and after the beer kicks in, we discuss the strange habits of Generation Z, trends in the video game industry, and more.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#16 Cullen Chen - We Are Back! Apr 12, 2021

Cullen and I catch up after keeping our heads down and staying busy throughout Q1. We talk pizza, GameStonk, bitcoin, and Retrospect III.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#15 Cullen Chen - Hot Button Topics, Projects, Hangover Dec 01, 2020

Cullen and I sit down and catch up on life, politics, and closing out 2020.

Check out Albany Watches here.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#14 Brett Williams - Albany Watch Co., Microbrand Industry Health Check, Surfing, Kickstarter Oct 30, 2020

Brett Williams is the founder and designer at Albany Watch Company. In his day job, he is an actor, who's latest work includes Ridley Scott's latest project on HBO max, Raised by Wolves. Recently, he has decided to turn one of his passions into a business - a story we are very familiar with - his recent off-screen project has been a couple of years in the making, but they just launched their debut, the Ama diver, on Kickstarter and they reached their goal within an hour. In this conversation, Brett and I talk about being an actor, artist, and creative; we discuss the history of the Ama divers from Japan, and we also talk about what he has been doing with Albany for the past two years before launching this past week. We talk about how we take criticism on our designs from the watch community and what comes next for Albany.

Check out Albany Watches here.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#13 Spencer Davidson - Dial & Bezel, Auction Platforms, Vintage Watches Oct 06, 2020

This episode of the podcast is with Spencer Davidson from Dial and Bezel. Dial and Bezel started about a month or so ago, but they have really hit a stride in not only reaching the community but also in the quality of their curation, something that Spencer is directly involved in. I first heard about Dial and Bezel through my friend, Josh (@stuffandwatches). Josh posted about Dial and Bezel on his story and I immediately was intrigued. Spencer reached out to me soon after that and I figured that it would be a great episode for a podcast. So sit back, relax, and let's get to know Spencer and Dial and Bezel.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#12 Melis Aydoğan & Christopher Corgiat - Rüya: Coffee, Chocolate, and the Immigrant Dream Sep 24, 2020

In this episode of Long Roads, I sit down with my friends Melis and Christopher, the brilliant minds behind Rüya. Rüya is a bold company with bold vision - and they seek to achieve that vision through coffee, chocolate, and as you will hear in this episode, a new beer that they are currently working on. Beyond the guilty pleasures for all hours of the day, Rüya has a much larger goal in mind, and that is to rewrite the narrative around immigrants - and we will dive into what that entails. "Rüya" means "dream" in Turkish, and it was inspired by Melis' parents, who came to the US from Turkey with no real plan, no money, but they were armed with a dream and they built a life here. The three of us discuss how we approach building a business, the importance of community, and what the future holds for Rüya and beyond. Sit back, relax, pour yourself a cup of coffee, and enjoy the show. See what Rüya is all about at their website, Instagram, and/or Facebook. Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here. This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok. Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#11 Cullen Chen - Quarantining, Wes' Return to the US, COVID-19 Impact, Upcoming Things Jul 08, 2020

In this episode of the podcast, Cullen and I catch up after my four month stint in Asia. Despite being back in LA, this podcast was recorded remotely, as I have been quarantining for two weeks, just to play it safe. We discuss my return to the US, the past few months of isolation, and the difference between the US and Asia. We also talk about COVID19's impact on the watch industry as a whole and how watch companies are coping. We talk about the road map from now until the end of the year and Cullen gives us a status update on the projects that are currently in the pipeline.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#10 Mark Koester - Vaccines, Exploding Cars, Supply Chain Jun 19, 2020

In this episode of the podcast, I catch up with my friend, Mark, who is a scientist, beer enthusiast, and a valued member of the Nodus Fam. We talk about beer, watches, and life. We also discuss the work he is doing as a scientist, and how his firm has had to re-orient themselves to work on a coronavirus vaccines for the ongoing global pandemic. Mark is also the owner of Mark's Straps, a strap company based in New Jersey, and we discuss his thoughts on how global supply chain might affect his business.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#9 Cameron Frayne - Growing Up in China, PPP loans, SBA, Economy After COVID-19 Apr 30, 2020

This episode is with one of my best friends in the whole world, Cameron Frayne. Cam is a Bain Consultant, who is currently on secondment at Bench Accounting, a firm that provides subscription-based bookkeeping services for small businesses in the USA. At Bench, Cam has been working as a Senior Strategy Manager, primarily focused on client success and navigating the recent Covid crisis.

#8 Cullen Chen - Upcoming Projects, Working from Home, Government Stimulus Apr 23, 2020

This is another board meeting episode, where I touch base with Cullen, who is on the other side of the world. We catch up on work, life, and current events. During this episode, we have a wide-ranging conversation about the next few Nodus projects that will take us into the fall, how retail and brick and mortar shopping is going to change, and how we are each dealing with working-from-home. We also discuss SBA loans and the small business stimulus plan by the US government. We talk about the things we miss the most about pre-pandemic times and discuss the important role that American businesses and corporations play in lending a helping hand during this crisis.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#7 Dallas Thornton - Art in the Modern World, Range, When the Dust Settles Apr 23, 2020

Dallas Thornton is an up-and-coming independent musician based in Los Angeles. In our conversation, we discuss the role of art in the modern world and the process of creating it, whether that is embracing creativity or compromising for commercial feasibility. We also discuss the importance of having range - or breadth of skills and experiences - in solving both kind and wicked problems. Finally, we discuss who the world could look different on the other side of this pandemic. Dallas plays a couple of his songs in this episode.

Dallas' Facebook live show

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#6 Steve Laughlin - Coronavirus Impact, Hong Kong Memories, Meeting Alex Honnold, Raven Watches Apr 10, 2020

Steve Laughlin, Managing Director of Raven Watches, is one of the veterans of the American independent watch scene. Raven Watches has been producing watches since 2008, with a focus on adventure-driven watches. Apart from running Raven full-time, Steve is an active outdoorsman and enjoys traveling the world and immersing himself in different cultures.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#5 Cullen Chen - Jam-isode: Beer, Watches, Guitars, and Jams Mar 18, 2020

In this episode of the podcast, I have a beer with Cullen with guitars in hand. We talk about music, beer, and jam on a few tunes. These are strange times that we live in, and it is important to remember that these important things in life. Stay safe, stay clean, and wash your hands.

Songs featured in this episode:
Nightrain - Guns N’ Roses
Man In The Box - Alice in Chains
Good Love Is On The Way - John Mayer
Remedy - The Black Crowes
Queen Of California - John Mayer

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thornton.

#4 KC Ng & Marshall Kai - Career Choices, Matick Collaboration, Stolen Contrail Mar 12, 2020

In this episode of the podcast, I sit down with KC and Marshall in KL, Malaysia, where I was at for the first Nodus Tour Asia. We talk about career choices and how we chose the path we are on, the genesis of the Matick Blog - Marshall and KC’s online watch magazine - and how our collaboration with them came to be. We also talk about KC’s first Nodus - a Contrail Laguna Sand - and how it got stolen.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thonton.

#3 Cullen Chen - Euro-trip, horolo-drama, coronavirus, Asia-trip Feb 27, 2020

In this episode, Cullen and I talk about my recent trip to Europe, drama in the watch industry, how coronavirus is affecting our business, and my upcoming Asia trip.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thonton.

#2 Cullen Chen pt.2 - Picking Colors, Iran Conflict, Q&A Jan 24, 2020

Cullen and I continue our conversation from last episode, but this time with much more booze. We talk about how we pick colors for our models, the Iranian conflict, and we end with a Q&A.

Submit questions for us to address in future episodes here.

This episode was produced by Wesley Kwok.
Music in this episode was written, recorded, and produced by Dallas Thonton.

#1 A Conversation w/ Cullen Jan 06, 2020

In this episode, I have a candid conversation with Cullen, reflecting on 2019 as well as looking forward into 2020. I briefly talk about my upcoming Euro-trip as well as a few things I am excited for in the coming year.

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