WHAT WOULD JIMI WEAR? DEFIANCE USA BRINGS FENDER INTO FASHION.

Daily News Record, January, 2005 by Tschorn, Adam

Byline: ADAM TSCHORN

Fender guitars have long been fixtures in the hands of rock legends from Buddy Holly to Kurt Cobain. In the last year and a half, though, the brand has been making noise in the apparel industry, thanks to a 55-year-old British expatriate who turned a teenage obsession into a thriving global licensing agreement.

"I've been in love with the brand since I was 15 or 16 years old," says Christopher Wicks, owner, president and chief executive officer of Los Angeles-based Defiance USA Inc., and licensing director for Fender-brand apparel. "I'd have ...