Fender Hits Record Sales in China

Fender is a quintessential American brand. It started as a small radio shop in Fullerton, California, in 1938, and began making guitars in the 1940s. Today, musicians across the world play their guitars. In China, musicians are buying the iconic American instrument on Alibaba’s Tmall ecommerce platform.

While many players still love the hands-on experience of buying a guitar and feeling the instrument in store before making a purchase, on Tmall, Fender discovered that Chinese consumers were comfortable buying online without actually touching the instruments, even when it came to its premium, high-ticket items.

Sales from Fender’s flagship store on Alibaba’s Tmall increased by over 50%, while sales from offline channels in China grew by just about 10%. “We’ve been working with Tmall for a couple of years now, and we know that it works, that there are consumers out there, and that it’s an exceptional tool to reach those consumers,” Fender Asia President Bud Cole said.

The next step is a double, triple, and quadrupling down on Alibaba’s Tmall platform.

—Edward “Bud” Cole, President, Fender Asia