Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
At The Back => Time Out => Topic started by: Twinfan on March 08, 2012, 07:28:47 PM
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17306242
Buy your Fenders now before the bean counters take over??? CBS part 2???
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I had the same thought Dave. Well I have my Fenders safely stashed so if they do go all CBS on us, it will just be a sad tale to me.
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This thread makes me want to buy a strat.
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:lol:
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I imagine the bean counters have been there a few years anyway with the private equity firm's involvement.
Worst case my cabronita becomes more valuable?
We will know if they start roasting the necks!
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completely unrelated question- are you thinking of buying any fenders any time soon, dave?
:D
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After watching Walter Trout I am definitely wanting a strat again.
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completely unrelated question- are you thinking of buying any fenders any time soon, dave?
Nope!
Might buy some shares though...
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dang. i was hoping the shares might shoot up :lol:
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I'll wait for the Gibson shares!
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We will know if they start roasting the necks!
Then Suhr would definetly sue them xD
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And Musicman :)
Funny how they can do it and Gibson can't without getting a real kicking
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And Musicman :)
Funny how they can do it and Gibson can't without getting a real kicking
I think the difference is that Suhr and Music Man are offering roasted maple necks as an alternative to regular maple; it looks attractive and they actually try to make it a selling point.
Whereas Gibson are using baked maple for fingerboards - as a substitute for different, darker coloured woods like rosewood and ebony. It looks pasty, everyone knows they've been forced into it and their attempts to "sell" it are half-hearted.
I wonder how long it'll be before Warmoth start offering roasted maple necks?
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Back on topic, I hope Fender aren't entering into a new CBS era. Yes, it's already a huge "corporate" organisation but at least their product is good.
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Back on topic, I hope Fender aren't entering into a new CBS era. Yes, it's already a huge "corporate" organisation but at least their product is good.
+1
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The impact is probably gooing to be that they pay off their debts and then buy Gibson! ;)
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apparently they need to do an ipo (share offering) to raise money to pay off debt! i mean wtf. if you can't, with an icon of a brand like fender, during one of the most 'consumerist' periods ever, run a company without a profit there's no hope.(they have $200 000 000 in debt)
when they have shareholders they will need to 'benefit' the shareholders so i can't see it benifitting the guitars as well.
like many things nowadays it will be all about 'brandname' whilst forgetting what made the brandname important in the first place.rip fender. :(
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I think the fact that 40% of Fender has been owned by a private equity firm and 14% by a Japanese conglomeration for some time would have turned them into a 'brandname only' already but that has not happened - they have a relatively good business model in the form of a sold 'core lines', product at all price point and interesting quirky lines that last a year or two. And most people agree that Fender are making some of the best guitars that they have ever made.
Fender's problem seems to have been that they have bought too many subsidiary companies, made a huge loss when the global downturn first hit a couple of years ago and raw material prices rose.
I personally don't think the IPO will do very much. At least I hope not.
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Good points Elliot. Buying Gretsch, Charvel, Jackson etc must have cost big.
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US Music Corp, Guild, Kaman......
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....um, Tacoma Guitars.....
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Kaman in 2007 was the big, bitter pill... "The deal came with distribution rights of more than 100 brands, including the Ovation, Latin Percussion, Toca, Gibraltar, Genz Benz and Hamer."