Where It Started

Founded by Tom Dowler in 2020, Johnny Foreigner Guitars was spawned from a realization, and frankly a frustration, that the options for ordering custom guitars were so limited and always carried an unreasonable markup. 

It started as a personal project to create a high quality guitar to a design Tom had in his mind, at this point there was no intention or ambition to turn this into a business. It took several years, with countless attempts, testing a wide range of machines, and learning everything about the ins and outs of guitars and how they’re made to create his dream guitar, 'Blue Beauty'. 

Several months after making his dream guitar, 'Blue Beauty', Tom made another guitar as a birthday gift for a friend. This guitar was made as a joke with his friends face on the body, but the response he got from his friend after playing the guitar was that it may be the best guitar he’s ever played. It was here that the idea of Johnny Foreigner Guitars was created, an idea so insane that few have attempted it - completely custom guitars designed online without the insane markup.

About Tom

Tom has been playing guitar since he was 12 years old, as an imaginative teenager it became clear to there were limitations on the styles and choices of guitars that were available - and when working with a budget those limitations became even harsher. 

It was clear that you as a musician are locked into the options that the manufacturers of guitars decide will be produced. This didn’t work for an imaginative musician like Tom, and later in life on an experiment to create his dream guitar, 'Blue Beauty', Johnny Foreigner Guitars was born. Now with the assistance of CNC etching machines, Tom is able to let musicians design their dream guitars and create a near infinite variations of guitars.

  • UNPARALLELED LEVEL OF CHOICE

    Customize over 20 different attributes of your dream guitar. From pickups, to hardware, to finishings - create a guitar that is uniquely yours.

  • ALWAYS MADE IN THE USA

    All guitars are made, assembled, and serviced in Los Angeles, California. Johnny Foreigner never manufactures overseas and only employs fair trade and ethical practices.

  • QUALITY YOU CAN FEEL

    All Johnny Foreigner Guitars are made with the highest quality of materials, from the wood to the hardware. If the guitar doesn't meet your expectation it's backed with a 30 day money back guarantee and a 2 year warranty.

1 of 3