# How the Beretta Family Built a 500-Year Gun Empire

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/family-business-stories-with-fexingo-succession-legacy-and-multi-generational-companies-7871577/how-the-beretta-family-built-a-500-year-gun-empire
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/family-business-stories-with-fexingo-succession-legacy-and-multi-generational-companies-7871577/how-the-beretta-family-built-a-500-year-gun-empire.md
Podcast: [Family Business Stories with Fexingo: Succession, Legacy, and Multi-Generational Companies](https://stenobird.com/podcast/family-business-stories-with-fexingo-succession-legacy-and-multi-generational-companies-7871577)
Published: 2026-07-01T15:56:14+00:00
Episode link: https://audio.fexingo.com/business/family-business-stories/episode-0087.mp3
Audio file: https://audio.fexingo.com/business/family-business-stories/episode-0087.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/family-business-stories-with-fexingo-succession-legacy-and-multi-generational-companies-7871577/episodes/how-the-beretta-family-built-a-500-year-gun-empire
Duration seconds: 570

## Resource

In this episode of Family Business Stories, Lucas and Luna explore how the Beretta family has kept their gun-making business alive for nearly 500 years — making them one of the world's oldest continuously operating family enterprises. They trace the company's founding in 1526 in a small Italian village, its survival through wars and industrial revolutions, and the key decisions that allowed each generation to pass control intact. Specific focus on the family's governance structure — particularly how they avoided the 'third-generation curse' by training heirs outside the business and using a family constitution. Also discussed: how Beretta balanced tradition with modern manufacturing, and the role of diversification into clothing and accessories. A look at what other family firms can learn from an empire that started making arquebus barrels and now supplies NATO. #Beretta #FamilyBusiness #Business #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ItalianBusiness #GunIndustry #Succession #Legacy #FamilyGovernance #Manufacturing #GenerationalWealth #PrivateCompany #1526 #Longevity #Firearms #Heritage #EuropeanIndustry Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

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## Transcript

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