Latest / Family Business Stories with Fexingo: Succession, Legacy, and Multi-Generational Companies / How the Beretta Family Built a 500-Year Gun Empire
Transcript
- Lucas: When I say 'family business that lasted 500 years,' your brain probably goes to some ancient monastery or a sake brewery in Japan. But there is a company in northern Italy that has been making the same product, under the same family name, since 1526. Luna: Beretta. The gunmaker. I think most people know the brand, but I didn't realize it went back that far. Lucas: It is genuinely one of the oldest continuously operating companies in the world. And it's still 100 percent family-owned. We're talking 15 generations, from the Renaissance to the age of smart guns. Luna: Fifteen generations. That is — I can barely plan dinner two days out, and these people have been passing a business down for half a millennium. Lucas: Right. And what's fascinating is how they navigated every major disruption — wars, industrialization, two world wars, the rise of global competitors, changing gun laws — without ever breaking the chain. Luna: Look, before we get into the deep history, I want to say something. If these conversations have moved your work forward in some small way, we deliberately keep this show ad-free because we think it's a better experience for you. Lucas: If that choice matters to you, the simplest way to support it is buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. No pressure, just a way to keep the episodes coming without commercial breaks. Luna: Yeah. And now back to the Beretta family. So how does a gun company survive five centuries? Start at the beginning. Lucas: So the founding story is almost accidental. In 1526, a man named Bartolomeo Beretta was a master barrel maker in the town of Gardone Val Trompia, in the Brescia region. That area had been a center of ironworking since Roman times. Luna: He wasn't starting a company per se — he was a craftsman selling gun barrels to the Venetian Arsenal. Lucas: Exactly. The first recorded transaction is a receipt for 185 arquebus barrels, dated October 3, 1526. That receipt still exists in the family archives. The Venetians needed weapons for their fleet, and Bartolomeo made good barrels. So the business was born out of a specific contract. Luna: And it never stopped. What's the succession model that kept it going? Lucas: For the first few centuries, it was straightforward: the eldest son inherited the workshop. But what's interesting is that the family didn't expand wildly. They stayed small, local, focused on quality. They weren't trying to build an empire — they were trying to make a living. Luna: So survival through humility. Or maybe just good timing. Lucas: Partly. But the real test came in the 19th century. The Industrial Revolution changed gunmaking from a craft to a manufacturing industry. Many small family workshops disappeared. The Berettas adapted by mechanizing early — they were one of the first gunmakers to use machine tools. Luna: And they kept ownership within the family, even as they grew big. Lucas: Yes, but they also made a crucial decision in the 20th century. During World War I, the Italian government needed massive quantities of rifles. Beretta scaled up from a few hundred workers to several thousand almost overnight. After the war, demand collapsed. The company could have gone under. Luna: So what did they do? Diversify into shotguns and sporting guns? Lucas: Exactly. They pivoted to civilian markets — hunting and target shooting. That saved them in the interwar period. And then World War II came, and again they produced for the military, but they also maintained their civilian lines. After the war, they had a solid brand in both military and sporting firearms. Luna: So they survived by being flexible — military during war, consumer during peace. That seems like a pattern you see in many family businesses. Lucas: Yes, but the Berettas also made a governance choice that's uncommon. Until the 20th century, management was almost exclusively male. But in the 1960s, when the men in the family were either too old or uninterested, the company was run by a woman named Drusilla Beretta. Luna: Wait, a woman leading a gun company in the 1960s? That's not typical. Lucas: Not typical at all. Drusilla was the daughter of the then-owner, and she took over in 1965. She modernized the factory, expanded exports to the United States, and oversaw the introduction of the Model 92 pistol, which later became the standard sidearm for the U.S. military. Luna: The Model 92 — that's the M9, right? The Beretta 9mm that the U.S. Army adopted in 1985. Lucas: Exactly. That contract was a game changer. It was a multi-billion dollar deal over decades. And it happened because Drusilla had built the relationships and the manufacturing capacity to compete with American gunmakers. She ran the company for over 30 years. Luna: So the family was willing to put the most competent person in charge, regardless of gender. That's something a lot of family businesses fail to do. Lucas: That's a key lesson. The Berettas have always prioritized competence over primogeniture. In the 1990s, the current chairman, Franco Gussalli Beretta, took over after his uncle. But the family has also brought in non-family CEOs for specific roles, especially in finance and international marketing. Luna: So they mix family leadership with professional management. That's another common pattern in long-lasting family firms. Lucas: Right. But they've also been careful about ownership. The company is still 100 percent owned by the Beretta family, but they've used a holding structure that prevents any single branch from selling out. Shares are held within a trust-like arrangement. Luna: What about the 21st century? The gun industry has faced huge regulatory and cultural pressures. Lucas: Beretta has navigated that by being politically pragmatic. They're based in Italy, but they have major operations in the U.S., including a factory in Tennessee. They've also diversified into clothing and accessories — Beretta is a lifestyle brand now. But the core remains firearms. Luna: And the family is still involved day-to-day? Lucas: Yes. The current CEO is Pietro Gussalli Beretta, the son of Franco. He's the 15th generation. The family has a rule that future generations must work outside the company for at least three years before joining the family business. That brings in outside perspective. Luna: Three years elsewhere. That's a smart filter. It weeds out the ones who are just coasting on the family name. Lucas: Exactly. And the family also has a formal family council that meets regularly to discuss strategy, values, and succession. They have a written family constitution. Luna: So they treat the family itself as a governance structure, not just a sentimental attachment. Lucas: That's exactly the right way to put it. The Beretta family has been able to last 500 years because they've been disciplined about three things: adapting to market changes, keeping ownership unified, and training the next generation rigorously. Luna: And they've done it in an industry that's constantly controversial. That must add another layer of complexity. Lucas: It does. But the family's view is that they make tools for sport, hunting, and self-defense. They don't engage in political advocacy. They focus on engineering and quality. That's allowed them to remain respected even in a polarized environment. Luna: So what's the biggest threat to Beretta today? Is it regulation, competition, or something internal? Lucas: Probably a combination. The U.S. market is the largest, and any change in gun laws could impact sales. But also, the family will eventually face the challenge of keeping 15th and 16th generation cousins aligned. The more branches, the harder it is to maintain unity. Luna: But if they've done it for 500 years, they probably have a playbook for that too. Lucas: I think they do. It's the same playbook: stay focused on the product, keep the family involved but not entitled, and be willing to change everything except the core values. Luna: It's remarkable. A company that started with a single contract for 185 gun barrels is still making the same product, for the same family, nearly 500 years later. That's a legacy most businesses can only dream of. Lucas: And it's a reminder that family business isn't just about keeping wealth in the family — it's about keeping a mission alive across generations. The Berettas aren't just selling guns; they're stewards of a craft that began in the Renaissance.