Case Study: Fender launches Fender Play and reaches 1M+ subscribers with Zuora

Fender - Customer Case Study

Fender, the world’s largest maker of guitars and ukuleles, faced a major business problem: internal research showed 90% of new players quit within three months, while those who kept playing for a year became lifelong customers. Selling primarily through retailers left Fender without customer insight or a digital strategy, so the company needed a way to engage beginners, improve retention, and build recurring revenue—starting from scratch with no engineering team—so they partnered with Zuora.

With Zuora, Fender launched Fender Play, a subscription service delivering step‑by‑step lessons across instruments, genres, and skill levels, while Zuora handled the full subscription lifecycle (billing, proration, cancellations, dunning, etc.). The result: rapid growth and strong engagement—200,000+ paying customers and nearly 95% retention within three years, subscribers spending 40% more on average, and membership surpassing 1 million during the pandemic—creating a predictable new revenue stream and deeper customer relationships.

Fender

Jim Broenen

Chief Financial Officer