The firearm industry’s focus on family is unlike any other. It understands its products may be called upon to defend loved ones until first responders arrive, a painful reality that puts emphasis on performance and reliability. That mission is accomplished in enviable fashion by harnessing computerized precision and monitoring, but some companies also rely on two other assets to fulfill that goal—family heritage and passion.
Most gun-related firms understand hiring family can bring generations of skill, enthusiasm and pride to the job. Those virtues are scarce and extremely valuable in today’s labor market, and the firearm industry’s ability to find them benefits every enthusiast.
The Browning story is famous when it comes to firearm knowledge passed on through generations. It’s no coincidence Beretta is the world’s oldest gunmaker, at nearly 500 years young, and Mossberg continues to thrive well past its 100th birthday. All began as family-owned firms, and many remain so.
Nearly every firearm factory toured by Shooting Illustrated has multiple family members working on its team. The Vickers family experience at Federal—four generations deep—is a special one, though.
Josh Vickers is Federal’s product line manager for shotshell ammunition. He interned with the company for multiple summers and began full-time employment there in 2015. His great-grandmother worked for the firm, then his grandmother, grandfather and two great uncles. Chris Vickers, his father, has been there 16 years and is an engineering technician on the manufacturing- engineering team. Josh’s wife, Ashley, works as an accounts-receivable analyst.
Solid futures aside, there’s also the fact that big cities don’t usually roll out the red carpet for gun companies. Small-town locations can often be advantageous, according to Mark Gurney, director of product management for Ruger. “In those situations, it is common to see members of the same family working under the same roof. They generally don’t work side-by-side in the same department, but it’s not uncommon to see husbands and wives or fathers and sons working together, as different departments often need to work together. For example, we had a husband who was a very senior operations guy, whose wife was a very senior admin. Between the two of them, they had their fingers on the pulse of the factory. They both recently retired after a combined 80-plus years with the company.”
Gun companies don’t just limit their products to hardware. Many are offering training, and the SIG Sauer Academy is one of the world’s foremost. Scott Kenneson recently retired from the famed facility, and was there when his son, Dylan, was hired as an instructor. “I was lucky enough to work with my son, and I got to watch him grow from starting out in the custom shop, learning how firearms work and how to diagnose and repair them when they didn’t work,” Scott said. “Later, he transferred to the Academy and started his training to become an instructor.”
