Kongo Gumi

Kongo Gumi Co., Ltd. is a Japanese construction company purportedly founded in the year 578 by Shigemitsu Kongo, making it the worlds oldest documented company. Headquartered in Osaka, Japan, the firm specializes in the design, construction, restoration and repair of shrines, temples, castles and other cultural heritage buildings, work it carried out under family leadership for close to fourteen centuries. In 2006 financial difficulties led to its acquisition by the Takamatsu Construction Group, and Kongo Gumi now operates as a subsidiary of that company, continuing its traditional temple and shrine construction work.