Japan boasts several businesses over a thousand years old, from temple builders to hot spring inns, demonstrating remarkable longevity in a rapidly changing world. A Teikoku Databank report shows 45,284 companies operating for 100 years or more as of September 2024, with 11 exceeding a millennium.
In 578, craftsmen from Korea's Baekje kingdom, including Kongo Shigemitsu, arrived to build Shitennoji temple in Osaka, founding what is considered the world's oldest company, Kongo Gumi. Executive Chairman Toshihiko Tada says, "The existence of Shitennoji itself stands as proof that Kongo Gumi has continued for so long." The firm received stipends as master carpenters until the Edo Period, rebuilding the temple after fires using intricate wooden joinery without nails.
The 1868 Meiji Restoration upended its world through anti-Buddhist policies, abolishing stipends. Tada notes economic turmoil in the 1920s led the 37th head to suicide in 1932; his wife Yoshie took over and rebuilt the five-story pagoda after the 1934 Muroto typhoon. Postwar expansion faltered, but in 2006, it became a subsidiary of Takamatsu Corp., now employing about 100 miyadaiku carpenters, with a 41st-generation Kongo family successor.
In Yamanashi Prefecture, Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan, founded in 705, holds Guinness recognition as the world's oldest hotel. General Affairs Head Junpei Morita traces origins to the sons of aristocrat Fujiwara no Mahito discovering the springs. It hosted figures like Emperor Koken and warlords Takeda Shingen and Tokugawa Ieyasu, surviving floods and renovations. Run by 53 generations, it now sees 20% inbound guests while preserving traditions.
Kyoto's Ikenobo, the oldest ikebana school, links to Prince Shotoku 1,400 years ago at Rokkakudo Temple. First recorded in 1462, Muromachi-era Ikenobo Senno codified its principles. Business Division Manager Takuya Tochimochi says Meiji-era inclusion in girls' education boosted it; today, it has 400 Japanese branches and 120 overseas, thriving on flexible local autonomy.
These firms, often family-run and tied to cultural practices, face demographic declines but draw global interest in Japanese heritage.
