# Fender CEO admits quality control issues, vows to fix them

> After complaints about slipping standards, Fender's new leader acknowledges the problem and outlines a factory-wide quality program.
- Title: Fender CEO admits quality control issues, vows to fix them
- Summary: After complaints about slipping standards, Fender's new leader acknowledges the problem and outlines a factory-wide quality program. Fender's CEO has…
- Keywords: fender, quality control, bud cole, ceo, manufacturing, corona california, ensenada mexico, guitar industry, covid-19 pandemic, fender 360 program, admits, quality
- Source: Guitar World — https://guitarworld.com/music-industry/fenders-ceo-addresses-quality-control-issues
- Published: 2026-09-24T11:57:54+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: fender, quality control, bud cole, ceo, manufacturing, corona california, ensenada mexico, guitar industry, covid-19 pandemic, fender 360 program
## Fender faces quality complaints
Players have noticed quality control standards slipping at Fender, especially after production ramped up during the COVID-19 pandemic.
## CEO Bud Cole acknowledges the problem
In a new interview, Fender's CEO admits he has heard complaints about quality and says he needs to listen when the company's reputation for quality is called out.

> Fender has always been relied on to be quality instruments for players at every level. And when that gets called out, I need to listen.
## Fender 360 program launches
Cole reveals the company has started Fender 360, a quality control program that monitors every step of production from raw materials through final inspection, not just at the end.

> We have instituted a program, Fender 360, which is not simply about when a guitar arrives at the end and final inspection. [But] from the moment we bring the raw materials in, every single step of the way.
## Cole brings Japanese manufacturing expertise
The CEO spent 22 years working in Japan and brings those manufacturing standards to Fender, prioritizing quality over production yield.

> For me, it's about quality, and yield doesn't matter if quality isn't first and at the front of everything we do.
## Changes rolling out across all factories
Cole says quality improvements are already happening at Fender's Corona, California factory and its Ensenada, Mexico facility, with changes coming everywhere the company manufactures.

> I can already assure you it's happening in our Corona factory, in Ensenada, and everywhere that we work.
## Key takeaway

Fender's CEO has publicly acknowledged quality control complaints and launched a company-wide quality initiative called Fender 360 across all manufacturing facilities.