The oldest companies ...

Fascinating piece on the oldest companies in the world, 

some of which were on the dark side of things without question..

At a time when the average company on the S&P 500 only survives for two decades, it’s surprising to see that there are companies that have existed for centuries around the world. The oldest company still operating today is in Japan. It’s a construction firm called Kongo Gumi that dates to 578 and has specialized in building temples for 14 centuries. Today, though the company has been bought by a construction conglomerate, temples still account for 80% of its business.

Read the Fast Company piece to learn more as yours truly certainty has. :)