Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A. is an Italian company born of the dream and capability of a renaissance craftsman. Thanks to the courage, vision and skills of its lineage, its name has earned international status for its high-tech content, performance and for the Italian style that distinguishes its products.
Beretta is one of the oldest gun makers in the world. The family can be traced back through 15 generations, the earliest records which has been found are the details of Bartolomeo Beretta being paid 296 ducats for supplying the Venetian Arsenal 185 barrels. By the 1540s they were producing and exporting thousands arguebus long guns out of Italy. One of their most famous customers was king Henry VIII who would often order hundreds of weapons at a time.
With the introduce of the flintlock mechanism in the 17th century, Beretta was quick to use the new design to begin producing new long barreled hunting guns. While they still mostly produced military weapons, during this time they began to look at other opportunities in the market.
Under the guidance of Pietro’s sons Giuseppe (1906-1993) and Carlo (1908-1984), the firm became a multinational and achieved brilliant success in the military and sporting sectors. Beretta has always produced weapons.
In the 1950s Beretta again expanded their ideas. With the ever excitement over the Olympics, Beretta became interested in the ISSF Olympic trap competition shooting. This led to the expansion of their sporting guns. Two decades later, in 1980 Beretta USA was established to meet the ever growing desire for sporting guns in America.
During 1995, Beretta opened Beretta Gallery in New York, on Madison Avenue. Branded to show off a true outdoor premier luxury lifestyle, including all of their best products.
Beretta continued to export and expand. Over time it continued to open more Beretta Galleries across the world. Including London, Milano, Moscow, and Paris to name but a few.