Mobile Edition
Print
Get the Mag
Weekly UpdatesMANY HAVE TRIED--and many have failed--in the quest to join low-cost production with quality craftsmanship in Asian guitar manufacturing, but few have approached the problem with as much combined industry acumen as the founders of Leader Musical Instruments. In less than four years since its founding, Leader has overcome early stumbling blocks to become a thriving international manufacturer with a nerve center in Korea, a manufacturing facility in China, and a new communications hub in the U.S. "Anyone can get guitars from China," says Leader President Jim Donahue. "But can you sell them?"
Donahue is a music industry veteran of more than 25 years. In the late 1980s he learned to build electric guitars at Fuji-Gen Gakki of Japan while also hand-building fretted instruments for some of the biggest names in the industry. He went on to earn a reputation for exacting craftsmanship while working for lbanez. In the early '90s, due to unfavorable exchange rates with the Yen, Donahue was sent to Cort Korea to help with a transition in guitar production from Japan to Korea. It was there that he met Tonny Kim, who would later become his partner at Leader Musical Instruments.
Kim, an accomplished engineer, left Cort Korea in 1993 to found World Musical instruments, which would become a leading guitar manufacturing center throughout the '90s. But in 2004, dissatisfied with the exchange rates and the cost of labor in Korea, he left World to open a factory in Weifang City, China, outside Qingdao, which became the manufacturing base for Leader Musical Instruments. He and Donahue formed a partnership in hopes of raising the bar on guitar production in China.
"I felt it was time to get back in the business," says Donahue. "Korean guitars are becoming more expensive, and labor laws in Korea are causing production delays for manufacturers there. We dedicated Leader Musical Instruments to the mission of supplying higher quality select fretted instruments to the world market in an affordable price range."
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Leader's Weifang City location holds a number of ties to Korea that simplified the transition to the new factory. The region's humidity and climate conditions resemble Korea's. Because of its proximity to Korea, the factory is able to take delivery of materials from its Korean suppliers within two days. The Qingdao area is also home to many Korean-speaking people, some of them Korean War refugees or their descendents.
Seeking an edge in materials, Leader took a global approach to sourcing. The hard maple for its guitar necks is imported from Canada. High-quality rosewood fretboards, imported from India, cost $3 more per guitar than more commonly used Chinese and Indonesian woods, "but when you have fewer returns, it's worth it," says Donahue. A special UV coating process, which prevents wear and discoloration in plated metals, is used in the production of Leader's gold and black nickel hardware. Several machines used in the factory were custom-designed by Kim to increase production and reduce waste.
Despite its efforts, Leader's first production order in October 2006 "was a disaster," Donahue admits. "Basically the entire shipment was returned." Determined to work out the kinks in the operation, he and Kim set up an intensive training program for their workers, offering instruction during lunch, dinner, and whenever they could find the time. Looking to reduce worker turnover, they set pay rates 25% higher than typical Chinese factories and brought in key personnel from Korea, quickly solving their labor problem. Within six month, their quality control problems had been resolved and they were receiving virtually no product returns.
By 2008 business had skyrocketed, particularly among European customers. With production levels of 6,800 guitars per month--l,800 more than the company had projected--Kim and Donahue made the decision to pare down production to focus on quality. Increased drying time was allotted for each instrument, resulting in a more refined finish. An automatic sanding machine developed by Donahue was installed to save time while improving consistency. In search of a durable fretwire that would resist wear and discoloration, Kim and Donahue engaged a company to develop a harder grade wire that won't yellow or tarnish--which in turn increased the lifespan of their strings.
Leader now has three locations: a main office for paperwork, customs documents, and communication in Inchon, Korea; the 400,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Weifang City; and a U.S. office in Feasterville, Pennsylvania, that opened in March 2008. The U.S. office, a communications center for customers throughout North America and elsewhere, also contains a full CNC-equipped R&D center, repair center, custom shop, and marketing facility. The company's next initiative will be U.S. production, slated to start with assembly and expand to include 100% U.S.-manufactured products.
"We have a great situation," says Donahue. "We were determined to make not just good guitars but the best guitars, better than Korean manufacturing. We're poised to take a large chunk of the higher-end Korean production."
(215) 364-2985
www.leaderg.uitar.com
FEED