The Oldest Companies Still Operating Today

The lifespan of large companies is steadily declining, with the average duration for Standard & Poor’s 500 companies dropping from 61 years in 1958 to less than 18 years today. However, despite the struggle for many companies to stay alive and relevant, certain companies have withstood the test of time, developing solid business practices that have allowed them to last hundreds of centuries and, in some cases, millennia. Currently, the three oldest, continually operating companies are Kongo Gumi, Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan, and Sennen no Yu Koman; the top ten all date back to the sixth, eighth, and ninth centuries.

10 Oldest Continually Operating Companies

1. Kongo Gumi - 578 AD

Kongo Gumi is a construction company that has been in operation since 578. It is headquartered in Osaka, Japan, and was family-owned for more than 1,400 years. A 17th-century scroll measuring over 3 meters (10 feet) documents the 40 generations that have worked in the company. Today, descendants continue to be involved in the company’s operation. Specializing in the construction, restoration, design, and reparation of cultural heritage buildings, the company pioneered the use of concrete with wood for temple construction, as well as computer-aided design to design temples. Due to economic problems in the early 21st century, the company became a subsidiary of Takamatsu Construction Group in 2006.

2. Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan - 705 AD

Founded in 705, Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan is the world’s second-oldest company and the oldest independent business. A hospitality company, it features a hotel, restaurant, and onsen (hot springs) in Yamanashi. Fifty-two generations led the hotel’s operation for more than 1,300 years until 2017, when no family member wished to take over the business, resulting in the company naming the general manager as the next president. Important historical figures have visited the hot springs over the years, including daimyo Takeda Shingen, Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu, and Japan’s current emperor, Naruhito. The hotel today consists of 37 rooms, a kaiseki restaurant, hot water sourced from the springs, and a moon viewing platform.

3. Sennen no Yu Koman - 717 AD

Hiuke Gonnokami founded Koman, a hotel in Kinosaki, in 717, making it the third oldest operating business and second oldest hotel in the world. Gonnokami’s descendants went on to establish bathhouses, with the business passed down through 46 generations. The development of the ryokan-style hotel over the centuries has been documented through two historical documents, called the Hiuke Family Heirloom Chronicle and Mandala Chronicle, one describing Kinosaki Onsen’s history and the other the hot spring resort’s history.

4. Hoshi Ryokan - 718 AD

Founded in 718, Hoshi is a ryokan-style hotel featuring hot spring baths and guest rooms spread across four wings that surround a Japanese garden. The Hoshi family has led hotel operations for 46 generations. For a period, people believed it to be the world’s oldest operating hotel until Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan came forward to claim that title. The ryokan is situated in Awazu Onsen, Komatsu, Ishikawa, Japan, and holds the record as being the oldest, continually-run family business on earth.

5. Genda Shigyo - 771 AD

Genda Shigyo is a paper production company founded in 771 in Japan. The company has been headquartered in Kyoto since the Heian Period (794 through 1192). They specialize in ceremonial paper goods, including gift wrapping, betrothal gifts, and mizuhiki, a traditional art form of knot-tying. The company supplied mizuhiki to important figures over the centuries, such as the imperial palace during the Meiji Era from 1868 through 1912. Today, the company manages wholesale and product printing, selling mizuhiki, betrothal gifts, and other paper goods.

6. St. Peter Stiftskulinarium - 803 AD

St. Peter Stiftskulinarium, in the old town district of Salzburg, Austria, has been a functioning restaurant since the ninth century. It was first mentioned in the Alcuin of York’s records in 803, calling it an “abbey cellar.” During the 11th century, the business focused on wine trade and exportation, exporting 40 wagonloads of wine per year. In 1517, the business expanded, adding a rock cellar and later an abbey bakery using the excavated rocks from the cellar. In the centuries to come, the business slowly turned into a hotel, with St. Peter Stiftskulinarium renovating the rooms to keep them relevant in modern times.

7. Staffelter Hof - 862 AD

Established as a wine-producing abbey in 862 in Kröv, Germany, Staffelter Hof is the world’s seventh-oldest business and now operates as a winery, distillery, and guesthouse. The land where the business still operates was donated by the Carolingian dynasty to provide the abbey with a source of income. Peter Schneiders purchased the land in 1805, and it has been passed down through seven generations. Today, it remains in the family, managed by his descendant, Jan Matthias Klein. Schneider’s family added a distillery to the property in 1890 and a guest house in 1960.

8. Monnaie de Paris - 864 AD

Monnaie de Paris is an institution owned by the French government. It was founded in 864 and was tasked with the production of French coins. It is the world’s oldest continuously operating minting institution and the world’s eighth-oldest business. Although originally established in Paris, In 1973, the institution relocated its headquarters to Pessac. The business still maintains facilities in Paris, primarily using them to house an ancient coin collection and museum. The Monnaie de Paris currently employs around 500 people, with about 55% working in the Paris location and 45% working in the Pessac location.

9. Tanaka-Iga - 885 AD

Founded in 885 during the Heian Period in Japan, Tanaka-Iga is a company that specializes in the production of Buddhist goods, such as butsudan shrines. It is the oldest company to sell Buddhist religious products and the ninth oldest continuously operating company worldwide. Today, the company has adapted to modern times, using 3D computer mockups to design items before production. Its headquarters are currently in Kyoto, and Masakazu Tanaka is the company’s current 70th-generation president.

10. Royal Mint - 886 AD

Although the Royal Mint, the United Kingdom’s coin production institution, has a long history, it officially traces its founding to 886, the same year Alfred the Great took the throne and wished to standardize coinage. In 1279, the government decided to centralize and unify the mints, moving all control to the Tower of London. Today, His Majesty’s Treasury owns the Royal Mint, and the Royal Mint has an exclusive contract stating that it be the sole producer of all British coinage. Since 2018, the company has been evolving to compensate for the declining use of cash, expanding into precious metals investments, luxury collectibles, and historic coins.

Final Thoughts

Although some of these businesses are family-owned and others government-owned, all have made strides over the centuries to remain relevant. For example, St. Peter Stiftskulinarium renovates its rooms to keep them appealing to guests, while the Royal Mint has sought alternative investment strategies to generate revenue in an era of declining cash use. Similarly, companies like Kongo Gumi have become subsidiaries to remain viable. As times continue to rapidly evolve, these companies have also evolved to meet the challenges of the changing landscape.

The Oldest Companies Founded before 1300