The World’s Oldest Company Operated for 1,400 Years
Japan’s Kongō Gumi construction company began in 578 CE and operated continuously until 2006. Specializing in temple construction, the company passed through 40 generations of the same family. Careful succession planning kept the business alive through wars, economic shifts, and technological changes. Though now a subsidiary of another company, its incredible 1,428-year independent run makes it history’s longest-running business.
