Los Angeles-headquartered instrument maker Fender, best known for its guitars, has appointed Edward ‘Bud’ Cole as its new CEO and Board member.
Cole will be CEO-Designate as of January 19, 2026, and will officially assume the CEO role on February 16, Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) said in a statement on Tuesday (January 6).
Cole will succeed Andy Mooney, who led Fender as CEO since 2015 and will be retiring.
Mooney leaves Fender after more than a decade in the CEO role, leading the company through a period of technological innovation that included the launch of subscription-based digital software.
Fender launched the Fender Play app – an online learning platform for guitars and other string instruments – in 2017. In 2025, the company launched Fender Studio, an app for recording music and jamming.
Cole has been with Fender since 2015, most recently serving as President of the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, a role in which he led a number of initiatives including the launch of Fender’s APAC headquarters in Tokyo and launching the first-ever Fender flagship store in Harajuku, Tokyo, in 2023.
Fender credits Cole with expanding the company’s presence in 14 APAC markets.
“Bud has been one of the most impactful leaders within our organization. He has a deep understanding of the Fender brand, our global players, and the commercial and operational foundation required to propel us into the future,” said Mark Fukunaga, Executive Chairman of the FMIC Board.
“His track record of building teams, expanding markets, and elevating Fender’s presence around the world makes him uniquely qualified to lead the next chapter of growth. On behalf of the Board, I also want to thank Andy Mooney for his leadership over the past decade and for the significant contributions he has made to the company.”
“[Cole’s] track record of building teams, expanding markets, and elevating Fender’s presence around the world makes him uniquely qualified to lead the next chapter of growth.”
Mark Fukunaga, Fender
“Leading Fender has been a highlight of my career. I’m deeply grateful for the creativity and commitment of the Fender teams around the world and proud of what we’ve accomplished,” Mooney said in a statement.
“I’m excited to pass the baton on to Bud and confident that under his leadership, Fender will continue to inspire players for generations to come.”
Prior to joining Fender, Cole held senior leadership roles at Pernod Ricard Group, LVMH, QVC, and Ralph Lauren, building a globally focused career that has seen him work in some 60 countries.
Fender stresses that Cole is a lifelong musician whose first guitar was an acoustic Fender La Brea, followed by a Fender Made-in-Japan 1969 Thinline Telecaster reissue purchased in 1989, which Cole still plays today.
A graduate of Arizona State University, Cole’s first job interview out of college was for a PR position at Fender – a role he didn’t land. That makes his eventual appointment as CEO “especially meaningful,” Fender said.
Founded in 1946, FMIC will celebrate its 80th anniversary this year. Along with the Fender brand, the company owns and operates Squier, Gretsch guitars, Jackson, EVH, Charvel, Bigsby, and PreSonus.
The company is majority-owned by Hawaii-based Servco Pacific, which besides music instruments holds interests in the mobility and auto dealership businesses. It is an investor in keyboard and synthesizer maker Roland.Music Business Worldwide
