A closer look
Most modern tech startups violently implode within three years, but Kongo Gumi managed to keep its doors open since 578 AD. Founded by a Korean carpenter to build Buddhist temples, this family-owned enterprise survived feudal wars, samurai uprisings, world wars, and the introduction of modern capitalism for 1,428 unbroken years. Ironically, what finally killed the oldest continuously operating company on earth wasn't a natural disaster or an invading army—it was just taking on slightly too much debt during a minor 2006 real estate slump.
