Beretta 500 Yr Anniversary

Oct 9

October 2026

By Mel Glaser, Owner, Shedhorn Sports, Ennis, Montana

It is hard to imagine one company has been operating for 500 years and consistently under one family. It is said Beretta is the longest operating commercial dynasty on the planet. Think about that. When I consider the low rate of family business succession (this website says less than 1/3 of family businesses continue on to a second generation), and then I consider 500 years of history in one family, it is mind-boggling and extremely impressive. How did they get along for so many years? As was said by an Italian we met, it is a competition between Beretta and the Pope as to who has the most influence in Italy.

Beretta’s 500 Year Anniversary became a big deal about 40 years ago. It was not until the 1980s that the company actually knew how old they really were. In 1984, someone in the Venetian state office uncovered a small piece of paper dated October 3, 1526 stating that Maestro Bartolomeo Beretta from Gardone sold 185 barrels to the Venetian arsenal. I believe the family had a huge party when they found out this piece of history was alive.

Beretta produced barrels for hundreds of years before producing their first firearm in the late 1800s. Fast forward to 2026, Beretta is still based in Gardone, Italy and Beretta Holdings now encompasses multiple companies under its umbrella. Subsidiaries of Beretta Holdings include big hitters like Tikka, Sako, Benelli, Franchi, Burris, Norma Ammunition and also smaller but ever-so prestigious companies like Holland & Holland. Over time, they have diversified themselves across the firearms industry in an impactful way. I appreciate their dedication to keeping the industry pertinent and continuing to encourage growth every day and into the future.

I was fortunate enough to be invited to Italy for Beretta’s 500 Year Anniversary experience this summer. The company extended the invitation to a select group of U.S. dealers, and Shedhorn Sports was on the party list! We spent a day in Venice touring the city and getting a visual on that special piece of historical paper noting the sale in October 1526 (see photo below). The next day we spent at the range on multiple shooting stands to include shotguns, rifles, and handguns. This was my first try at an english drive and I chose a gorgeously engraved side by side (for those who know me, of course this is what I would pick!). The last day with Beretta we spent at their factories; both factories are located at the same location in Gardone, Italy that existed 500 years ago. It was this location that the original forge was situated due to the iron ore found in the area, the creek, and the topography. They were able to use the local resources and the power of water to build the barrels, all while being protected within a narrow valley surrounded by the forest and hills. Truly a key location over the long history of the brand.

Factory 1 builds the high production firearms using big machines and such; while it is always impressive to see modern machinery at work, I really must focus on Factory 2…Factory 2 contains the high-end hands-on production of P. Beretta (Pietro Beretta) firearms. Pietro Beretta was the first Beretta to start making the actual firearms in the late 1800s, and his house was connected to the factory (note to all employees— he had a hole about 8’x8’ wide in his bedroom that allowed him to see into the factory and make sure everyone was working!). Factory 2 has a couple large work rooms for the hands-on stock building, a room for stock finishing, a room for the custom engraving (1,000+ hours for one side plate or was it one full receiver—I’m not sure, but a lot of time and very small careful movements), and a room for custom leather cases with custom leather engraving. We witnessed craftsmen and women replicating intricate images onto receivers for custom firearm builds, woodworkers manipulating wood stocks to fit a customer’s body perfectly, and leatherworkers creating art for custom gun cases. Beretta will often hire teenagers out of high school in the hopes to build up their passion and develop a long-term relationship and career with Beretta. After only 5 years, these recruits could become skilled enough to create beautiful parts and pieces of firearms for customers. A quick example of the Beretta Holdings mentality of expansion and dedication to the craft: recently the opportunity came up to purchase the local company that built gun cases, so they did! They brought the company in house, and we toured the leatherworks room and witnessed a craftswoman replicating a customer’s dog onto the front of a gun case (see photo). Factory 2 contains one amazing room after another. At the end of the factory tour, we were invited to walk through the Beretta museum which is the largest private collection of firearms in all of Europe…..wow…. (see photos).

They finished our trip with a formal party the last night which was a perfect end to a great experience. Needless to say, it was a spectacular trip. Beretta continually proves themselves to be a first-class operation. Anyone who owns one of their firearms knows that they perform well, and that is because the care that is put into the manufacturing process. Beretta spans from your production line firearms like we are able to stock at Shedhorn all the way to very custom-made firearms.

And true to the brand and their strive for excellence, in honor of 500 Years, they produced several very special firearms. At release of this newsletter, we have two 500 Year Beretta shotguns in the store and 1 very special Beretta 92 pistol on the way. Alas, it is not the one-off 1 of 1 500-year diamond studded 92 pistol, but it is really cool regardless. See all our current in-store Beretta inventory here.

For more information on Beretta firearms, please give us a call, we are always happy to help. In addition, our gun department is skilled at doing a fit check on your shotgun to ensure proper fit. Shotgun fit is a big deal and enough discussion for another day! In the meantime, please enjoy pictures from my trip to Italy with Beretta.

As a last note, Happy Anniversary to the Beretta family! Thank you for all you've done for the firearms industry across the world.