The budget of Beretta Armi
Beretta illustrated the reasons that led to the record turnover of 2022, which settled on a total value exceeding 310 million euros. In their speeches, the FGB President, the General Manager Carlo Ferlito and the Innovation Project Manager Carlo Gussalli Beretta focused on the challenges that characterized the year that has just ended, the recent corporate acquisitions, the investments undertaken and those planned for the future. A clear focus has emerged on industry 4.0 issues and, more generally, on a series of digital projects that Beretta has at heart, essential for looking towards a prosperous future in step with the times, while always maintaining the DNA that distinguishes Beretta for almost 500 years.
The intervention of Franco Gussalli Beretta
This is the intervention of the president Franco Gussalli Beretta: “2022 will be remembered and celebrated in the centuries-old history of our company as the year in which we reached and exceeded 300 million in turnover: a goal never achieved before. Current figures attest to a value that exceeds 310 million. These are extremely important numbers achieved thanks to our core business which focuses on the civil and sports market, as demonstrated by the 50% increase in the main European markets. I want to underline how well the national civilian market has performed, reaching record figures for a turnover exceeding 21M. In this record year I would like to highlight the important double-digit growth trend recorded by the clothing and accessories and spare parts and Proshop division (respectively +18% for clothing, +30% for accessories and + 20% for spare parts and Proshop ), numbers that reward the quality and high technology of our products and underline the importance of assistance and the "after market".
Market penetration
We are continuing to expand our network in order to get closer to the end customer in an increasingly widespread way. This is thanks to a greater focus and penetration of the markets through a direct structure that allows us to reach directly the gun shops and distribution chains. This growth is the daughter of our continuous tension in that internationalization process which started the eleventh generation of my family represented by Giuseppe Antonio and his son Pietro Beretta. In the wake of this path undertaken more than a century ago, we continue to work to open new markets. A complicated year, 2022. Like all Italian families and companies, we too at Fabbrica d'Armi had to face the crisis and the related energy price increases. Above all, a number gives an exhaustive and clear snapshot of what we had to face: the cost of production rose to €9,5 million compared to €2,8 million in the previous year. Going more specifically, in 2022 we spent €8,8M on energy (if we consider the €700k “saved” thanks to tax credit relief). Of these 9,5M, the electricity bill accounted for 2M (double compared to 7,5, while gas "only" for €2021M (increased by three times). In 2 they were spent on energy bills 2021 million. An incidence of growth of about 2,8%! Not only energy price increases, because the increase in the cost of raw materials has risen by 400%. All this has also led to an increase in the cost of suppliers, with an average increase of 50%.To deal with this unsustainable growth we have launched the 7×10% project which, thanks to a series of actions and small gestures, will allow us to save 10 percent of the energy consumed which, in the final , is worth several hundred thousand euros a year.
Investments and machinery
Fabbrica d'Armi never stops evolving: in 2022 we made 16M€ of investments, of which 9,5M€ in latest generation industrial machinery and 2,5M in digital projects. Engineer Carlo Ferlito will then go into detail, but I just want to tell you that even in 2023 we will continue in this direction having allocated a good 13M€. Still in the area of investments, we are continuing to carry forward projects related to Industry 4.0 and in particular to the development of tools for predictive maintenance which, as our General Manager will articulate, will allow us to make the most of the technical availability of our machinery. We will remember 2022 for the launch of new products, in particular for the BRX1 which allows Beretta to enter a new market segment such as that of the Big Game. This rifle has already been distributed in over 30 countries with 15.000 units sold, without considering the USA where it will be launched in 2023. As you already know and as you have already written in recent months, over the last year Beretta Holding has completed a very important strategic operation with the acquisition of Ruag Ammotec. In this way the group completes its product range thus offering the enthusiast a complete ecosystem. Let's think of a hunter who, looking towards the Beretta Group's offer, will be able to find everything from rifles to cartridges, from optics to technical clothing.
Added values
By maintaining the different brands and the traditional nature of the acquired companies, we will be able to further acquire new market shares. Before passing the word to engineer Ferlito, I want to tell you about the most important resource for the Company, the true and essential added value: human capital. For this reason, at the end of 2022 we wanted to reward and recognize an extraordinary amount of 1.000 euros that can be used on the Pellegrini welfare platform as well as a fuel voucher of €200. I think this should be considered as the first concrete step towards reducing the tax wedge. The important results obtained in the last 12 months and which we are telling you about today are also the result of the constructive climate regarding corporate relations"