Okay, so I was reading about AI and realised the audacity of Fender's strategy in claiming the S-shape (for Stratocaster) as entirely their own.
After seven decades and innumerable versions of the famous ergonomic double-horn shape, the recent moves to prevent others from using the design have put an ugly shade to the company.
Previously I thought that their decision was in response to the quality of Chinese counterfeits and my experience has been that Chenders offer a value that overshadows the original, especially since Fender guitars often lack the features they expect consumers to buy afterwards like better quality pickups and other parts.
The thing that occurs to me is that claiming the design, along with the legacy of Leo Fender in previous months, is it provides a moat for their business:
A moat is what protects a business from competition. The term comes from Warren Buffett’s image of a castle surrounded by water. The castle is the business; the moat is whatever prevents rivals from storming the walls. A moat might be a famous brand, a patent, a network effect, control over scarce resources, high switching costs for consumers, or a regulatory barrier that makes it difficult for competitors to enter the market. The deeper the moat, the easier it is for a firm to charge high prices, preserve margins, and survive imitation.
