Why Squier Is Becoming the New Fender

When we think of Fender guitars, the iconic Corona, California factory often comes to mind. But a massive, quiet shift has been happening on the factory floors of Asia. According to an insightful breakdown by the YouTube channel Six Strings in their video, "China Is Coming for Fender — And America Can’t Stop It," Fender’s manufacturing strategy has evolved far beyond simply making cheap guitars for beginners.

By closely examining this source material, we can unpack exactly how overseas manufacturing—particularly in China and Indonesia—is redefining what it means to buy a Fender or a Squier today.

A Quiet Manufacturing Revolution

We all know Squier has much better quality in recent years and a staggering array of new models, colors, and options announced year after year. This video is well worth a watch and discusses how Squier is evolving and how Fender is testing what it can offer consumers.

I'd also add that Squier gets a lot more 'interesting' new models, especially in recent years, with, for example, 12-strings, baritones, and hybrid designs becoming more common.

Six Strings points out a telling detail that sparked this industry shift: Fender's Shanghai factory, once known exclusively for entry-level Squiers, now runs a torrefaction oven six days a week. This oven cures roasted maple necks for guitars that retail for around $400.

Why is this a big deal? Historically, torrefaction—heating wood in a low-oxygen environment to caramelize its sugars and increase stability—was a boutique luthier technique reserved for premium custom shop models. Bringing this temperature-controlled, highly precise process to a mass-production Squier line signals a massive leap in manufacturing capability.

As the video notes, a factory doesn't invest in this level of quality control just to undercut on price; it makes this investment to build higher-tier instruments.

The Squier Journey: From Japan to China and Indonesia

To understand the current landscape, the video traces the fascinating lineage of the Squier brand:

• The Early Days: Originally an American string company, Fender bought the Squier name in 1965. By 1982, the modern Squier brand was launched, with guitars built in Japan alongside Fender Japan instruments.
• The Korean Slump: By the early 1990s, production shifted to Korea, but these plywood-bodied models struggled against competitors offering better materials at similar price points.
• The Shift to China and Indonesia: In 1994, Fender moved production to the Yako factory in China. By 2004, Fender doubled down, opening a highly automated joint-venture factory in Shanghai. Soon after, Indonesia joined the mix, largely through Cor-Tek (the manufacturer behind Cort guitars).

Today, China and Indonesia effectively split the workload. Indonesia typically handles high-volume, entry-level models (such as the Sonic and Affinity series), while China handles models that require more precise woodworking.

I know from owning a few Squier models in recent years that the quality of these instruments is now far higher than it was back in the 1990s. Which is great for us players looking for a new guitar, but not wanting to spend a lot of money.

The Squier J Mascis Jazzmaster was one of the models that first caught my attention when I purchased it back in 2011. At the time, it was ridiculously affordable (it came with a rosewood fretboard) and had a gold-anodized pickguard, and the neck was sublime for such a cheap guitar.

Since then, I have purchased a few Classic Vibe models and been similarly impressed. Some were made in Indonesia (Bass VI), and some were built in China. All were good working instruments, with more-than-usable hardware and pickups.

Blurring the Lines Between Squier and Fender

One of the most crucial points raised by Six Strings is how the gap between premium Squiers and mid-tier Fenders is vanishing.

Lines like the Squier Classic Vibe and Contemporary series (built in China) now feature solid hardwood bodies and those coveted roasted maple necks. Retailing between $400 and $600, these guitars are encroaching directly on the territory of Fender’s own Mexican-built Player and Player 2 series (which start around $799).

Also, I would add that the 2025 Indonesian-made Fender Standard Series was clearly testing the waters to see what it could offer consumers with that famous Fender logo.

The industry is no longer treating Chinese Squier production as a beginner category; it has become a manufacturing hub for professional-grade instruments that a working musician could comfortably gig with.

I just wish we had cheaper guitars of this quality when I was a kid, as they weren't so great back in the 1980s.

The Three Tiers of Fender Manufacturing

The video breaks down Fender's current global footprint into three distinct tiers:

1. The American Flagship (Corona, California): This plant builds top-tier models, including the American Ultra 2 and the American Professional series, starting at around $2,000. This tier is the "halo" that justifies the brand's prestige and remains largely untouched by offshore shifts.
2. The Squeezed Middle (Ensenada, Mexico): Building the popular Player series, this tier is feeling the most pressure. It competes directly with high-end Squiers from below, as well as with incredibly affordable competitors like Thomann's Harley Benton.
3. The Asian Powerhouses (China & Indonesia): Delivering unprecedented quality at lower price points, these factories are proving that origin labels matter less to modern players than pure specs.

Interestingly, Six Strings highlights a fascinating irony: while Fender vigorously defends the iconic Stratocaster body shape in court against smaller builders, the actual origins of the wood and hardware inside that shape continue to drift further from California every year.

The Impact of Tariffs and Global Economics

Manufacturing isn't just about wood and wire; it's about global trade politics. The video dives deep into how tariffs dictate where your guitar is made:

• Tariff Threats and Credit Downgrades: A 2025 Moody’s report highlighted that a 25% tariff on Mexican goods, stacked with a 10% tariff on Chinese goods, would cost Fender up to $25 million, leading to three separate credit downgrades. Fender initially pivoted to Indonesia to dodge these costs.
• Shifting Policies: Trade policy moves fast. By 2026, the Supreme Court struck down the 25% tariff on Mexican goods (which was replaced with a temporary 10% surcharge), and USMCA-compliant goods remained exempt. Meanwhile, Chinese goods faced escalating Section 301 tariffs exceeding 33%, eating into China's cost advantage.

Despite these fluctuations, Fender executives have actively lobbied Washington against these tariffs. As the video observes, companies don't send their product executives to lobby for manufacturing capacity they consider disposable—they do it to protect a highly capable supply chain they intend to keep using.

What This Means for Guitar Players

Ultimately, the video argues that the guitar community's mindset has evolved. A decade ago, gear forums were filled with players insisting a Mexican Fender couldn't compete with an American one. Today, that exact same debate is happening between Ensenada (Mexico) and Jianghua (China)—and many agree the quality gap has all but closed.

Country of origin has become a predictor of price, but not necessarily of tone or playability. Other legacy brands like Gibson (with their Qingdao-built Epiphones) and PRS (with their Cor-Tek-built SE line) have already proven that leaning on high-quality Asian manufacturing doesn't destroy a brand's reputation—if anything, the savings help fund their American flagships.

With retailers including Chicago Music Exchange and Andertons frequently offering exclusive Squier models in limited-run finishes, the Squier brand has certainly grown in popularity and has also become more trusted for quality and playability amongst working musicians in recent years.

Conclusion: A Matter of Margins, Not Capability

As highlighted in Six Strings' comprehensive breakdown, Fender is playing a cautious, calculated game. In a weak macroeconomic environment with soft consumer spending, launching a new, expensive American-made tier is a massive financial risk. Pushing an already proven overseas factory to build higher-quality instruments is a safe bet.

The factories in Asia are already fully capable of building a "Fender-quality" guitar. Going forward, whether a headstock says "Squier" or "Fender" is increasingly a corporate decision about profit margins and brand tiering, not a reflection of what the factory floor is actually capable of building.

If you would like to know more about the brand, then you can read our History of Squier article.

Let us know your thoughts and whether you play a Squier in our Reddit discussion (link below)

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