Fender Japan, Ltd. was a
joint venture
A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and economic risk, risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four rea ...
between
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, and to produce and sell Fender-branded instruments for the Japanese market. The collaboration began in 1982 and ended on March 31, 2015, with Fender's launch of Fender Music Corporation (Japan) taking over the Japanese business effective April 1, 2015 with a Fender-manufactured product line. The Japanese-made Fender guitars sold by Fender Music Corporation (Japan) have since been categorized as the "Japan Exclusive" series.Fender Japan, Ltd. was a joint venture between Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, Kanda Shokai (神田商会) and Yamano Gakki (山野楽器) to produce and sell Fender-branded instruments for the Japanese market. The collaboration began in 1982 and ended on March 31, 2015, with Fender's launch of Fender Music Corporation (Japan) taking over the Japanese business effective April 1, 2015 with a Fender-manufactured product line. The Japanese-made Fender guitars sold by Fender Music Corporation (Japan) have since been categorized as the "Japan Exclusive" series.
HistoryEdit
In the late 1970s, Fender was facing competition from lower-priced Japanese-made guitars. The higher-priced Fender guitars were made in the United States and could not compete directly with
History
In the late 1970s, Fender was facing competition from lower-priced Japanese-made guitars. The higher-priced Fender guitars were made in the United States and could not compete directly with Japanese-made Fender copies. In Japan, Fender was also losing sales to Japanese guitar brands such as
Tōkai
Tōkai ( 東海, literally ''East Sea'') in Japanese may refer to:
* Tōkai region, a subregion of Chūbu
* Tōkai, Ibaraki, a village, also known as "Tokaimura" (Tokai-village)
* Tōkai, Aichi, a city
* Tōkai University, a private university in T ...
,
Greco
Greco may refer to:
People
* Greco (surname), a list of people with this surname
* a masculine variant of Greca (given name), an Italian feminine given name
* Greco Mafia clan, one of the most influential Mafia clans in Sicily and Calabria
Wine ...
and
Fernandes. Since Japanese labor and production costs were much lower than in the United States, Fender moved the lower-priced Fender guitar production to Japan and began negotiations with several Japanese musical instrument distributors.
In March 1982, Fender Japan, Ltd. was officially established as a joint venture between Fender, and .
Kanda Shokai is a musical instrument wholesaler that does not own any retail outlets of its own. Kanda Shokai also owns the brand name, Greco. One of the conditions in the Fender Japan agreement was that Kanda Shokai cease production of its Greco Fender copies. Yamano is another musical instrument wholesaler/retailer with its own retail outlets and was once a part of the
Orville by Gibson
, the models with only were made after Gibson ended the contract with leftover parts, was a brand of guitars that was managed by the Gibson Guitar Corporation for the Japanese market during the late 1980s and most of the 1990s. The name is borrow ...
venture. Neither company manufactures guitars, instead ordering them from Japanese guitar factories and distribute them through retail outlets. Yamano distributes through its own retail outlets and also various other retail outlets, while Kanda Shokai distributes through various retail outlets, including the Ishibashi chain of music stores in Japan.
The Japanese guitar factories that produced Fender Japan guitars at various times were
FujiGen Gakki
FujiGen Gakki (), also known as FGN, is a Japanese musical instrument manufacturing company based in Matsumoto, Nagano. The company is named after Japan's iconic Mount Fuji. "Gen" means stringed instruments and "Gakki" means musical instrument – ...
,
Tōkai Gakki
, often referred to as Tokai Guitars, is a Japanese musical instrument manufacturer situated in Hamamatsu city, Shizuoka prefecture. Tokai is one of Japan's leading companies in the business. The company was founded in 1947 by Tadayouki Adachi an ...
and Dyna Gakki.
Manufacturers
At the beginning of the Fender Japan venture, Tokai was seriously being considered as the manufacturer, but after a breakdown in negotiations,
FujiGen
FujiGen Gakki (), also known as FGN, is a Japanese musical instrument manufacturing company based in Matsumoto, Nagano
is a city located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. Matsumoto is designated as a core city since 1 April 2021. , the city had ...
Gakki was chosen instead.
Some FujiGen-made Fender Japan models between 1982 and 1996 have necks made by Atlansia.
Tōkai Gakki and Dyna Gakki took over the manufacture of the Fender Japan models in 1996/1997. The Tōkai-made Fender Japan guitars were not exported, but some of the Dyna-made Fender Japan guitars were. Dyna Gakki have made various guitars for Kanda Shokai's
Greco
Greco may refer to:
People
* Greco (surname), a list of people with this surname
* a masculine variant of Greca (given name), an Italian feminine given name
* Greco Mafia clan, one of the most influential Mafia clans in Sicily and Calabria
Wine ...
brand.
Terada made the Fender Japan acoustic guitars such as the Fender Catalina.
"Made in Japan" and "Crafted in Japan"
* "Made in Japan" =
FujiGen Gakki
FujiGen Gakki (), also known as FGN, is a Japanese musical instrument manufacturing company based in Matsumoto, Nagano. The company is named after Japan's iconic Mount Fuji. "Gen" means stringed instruments and "Gakki" means musical instrument – ...
* "Crafted in Japan" = Others (
Tōkai Gakki
, often referred to as Tokai Guitars, is a Japanese musical instrument manufacturer situated in Hamamatsu city, Shizuoka prefecture. Tokai is one of Japan's leading companies in the business. The company was founded in 1947 by Tadayouki Adachi an ...
, Dyna Gakki)
According to a Fender representative, it was stipulated in the Fender Japan contract that if there was a change of manufacturer from FujiGen Gakki to another guitar factory, the production inscription in the guitar would be changed from "Made in Japan" (MIJ) to "Crafted in Japan" (CIJ). Most of the Japanese-made Fenders up until 1996/1997 were MIJ Fenders.
The first CIJ Fenders started around 1992, when Dyna Gakki took over some of the production requirements of Fender Japan. This resulted in the "Crafted in Japan" inscription appearing on some Japanese Fenders during this period. Dyna took over because FujiGen was expanding its own factory operations.
CIJ was used entirely on Japanese Fenders produced from 1996/1997 until 2015, after Tōkai and Dyna took over the Fender Japan manufacturing contract. The
Fender Squier range was also brought in line with the Japanese Fenders at around the same time (1996/1997), with the CIJ inscription being used.
Timeline
1982: Fender Japan starts production with FujiGen Gakki having the manufacturing contract. The "Made in Japan" (MIJ) logo is used.
1984: CBS sells Fender to its current owners and while waiting for a new US factory to begin production, Fender Japan models and leftover US stock were mostly sold in the US for a few years.
1993: The first "Crafted in Japan" (CIJ) models start appearing due to Dyna Gakki taking over some of the manufacturing while FujiGen Gakki were expanding their operations.
1996/1997: "Crafted in Japan" (CIJ) is used instead of "Made in Japan" (MIJ) because Tōkai Gakki and Dyna Gakki take over the manufacturing contract from FujiGen Gakki.
2015:
Fender, Yamano and Kanda Shokai end the Fender Japan joint venture on March 31, 2015. Fender took over the Japanese business effective April 1, 2015.
References
Sources
2005 Interview with Mr Shohei Adachi president of Tōkai Gakki1986/1987 tour of Fujigen factory, Rainer DaeschlerFujiGen Gakki HistoryAtlansia
{{Fender
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation
Guitar manufacturing companies
1982 establishments in Japan
2015 disestablishments in Japan
Musical instrument manufacturing companies of Japan