What Fender Just Did to Small Guitar Builders (And Why It Matters to You)

I usually don't make videos like this. In fact, I've never made one like this. But what Fender just did to small boutique companies affects you directly as a player, and I think it's too big an issue to ignore.

A quick note: this post is from my video of May 19, 2026, when this was a developing story. I'm not a lawyer, I'm a producer and guitar player. Check the latest news for where things stand now.

What happened

Fender issued a cease and desist over S style guitars, meaning Strat style guitars. After winning a ruling in Germany, they're telling builders: if you make an S style guitar, stop.

That lands on small builders like LSL, the guitar I'm holding in the video. Like Suhr. Like Tom Anderson. The list goes on. And fighting a corporation the size of Fender in court costs money these small shops don't have.

Why I'm the one talking about it

My grandma bought me a Fender Strat off the rack at Mars Music when I was 12. I wanted to be Jimi Hendrix. I played that one Strat professionally for 15 years straight. This isn't coming from someone who hates Fender.

Later I got connected with LSL, and for the record, no money changed hands for that video. LSL didn't know I was making it. I just think what these small builders do is special. Fender is a mass producer: sometimes you get a good one, a lot of times you get a lemon. Builders like LSL, Suhr, and Tom Anderson are making player grade instruments, and often at comparable price points. The difference is the craftsmanship.

Three ways this hits you

Fewer choices. If this went to court and Fender won, the player grade end of the S style market effectively gets wiped out. You'd be left choosing from one company's output, without the option of stepping up to a boutique instrument.

New prices go up. One behemoth making all the S style guitars means no competition, and no competition means they charge what they want. The economy is hard enough as it is.

Used prices go up too. Less supply of boutique S styles pushes the aftermarket up, and the used Fender market follows right behind it.

At the end of the day there are a lot of losers here, and you as a player carry a lot of the burden.

What you can do

If this resonates with you, LSL set up a GoFundMe to fight the potential legal fees. Lance and Lisa, the owners, are good people making great guitars, and supporting that fund is the most direct way to support small builders right now: Help defend S style guitars.

This is a developing story and the narrative may shift as more comes out. But that's where things stood, and that's the best way to help.

Watch the original video: No One Will Be Buying Fender After This

More from the workbench

For the flip side of the boutique conversation, my hands on review of a small builder instrument: the Suhr Classic JM S90.