Japan's Shinise: Century-Old Family Firms Outlasting Generations
Japan hosts the world's densest cluster of century-old, family-run businesses (shinise): more than 33,000 firms aged 100+ years and about 3,000 aged 200+ years. Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan, founded in 705 and run by the same family for over 1,300 years (52 generations) until a 2017 successor gap ended that direct line. Longevity comes from conservative habits—sticking to core trades, keeping reserves, avoiding debt, and using adult adoption (mukoyoshi) to preserve ownership—though demographics threaten future succession as some lines fade.