Top 5 oldest companies in the world that are still operational

The shelf life of modern companies is also short. But there are many companies that have survived many decades, even centuries.

Published: May 28, 2015 10:30 PM IST

By Mudabbir Ahmad

Top 5 oldest companies in the world that are still operational

In modern day business, companies get taken over by other companies all the time. This makes the present business world one that is bullish, as well as one that promotes a culture of negative aggression and wrong practices. The shelf life of modern companies is also short. But there are many companies that have survived many decades, even centuries. Here are 5 very old companies still in operation. I have included only commonly known companies, although there are many others, but those are not known much. (Read: 5 crazy facts about Inventors that you should definitely know!)

1. Beretta

Bartolomeo Beretta, a master gun barrel maker who lived in Gardone Italy, was paid by the Arsenal of Venice in 1526 to make 185 arquebus barrels (a type of cannon), making the Beretta company the oldest manufacturing company in the world. It is believed that the bill of sale from 1526 is still in the company’s archives. The Beretta family has continuously maintained control for the company’s entire history! Beretta’s output is approximately 1,500 weapons a day, and covers just about the entire range of portable weapons, with more than 75% of its arms being exported to about one hundred countries. Spanning now over 15 generations, this company has been a leader in its field for nearly 500 years.

2. Lloyd’s

Starting his business life as the proprietor of Edward Lloyd’s Coffee House in 1688, Lloyd pioneered the business of insurance. His coffee house was slowly recognized as being the place to obtain marine and shipping insurance. These days Lloyd’s of London provides specialist insurance for everything from underwriting many of the world’s insurance providers to space satellites. This is mostly because of the commitment and honesty of Lloyd’s.

3. SverigesRiksbank

Commonly regarded as the world’s oldest central Bank, SverigesRiksbank first named Stockholms Banco, was founded by Johan Palmstruch, in 1665. However, shortly after, the bank collapsed as a result of the issuing of too many notes, without the necessary collateral. Palmsruch was condemned to death, but later received clemency. On the 17th September, 1668, the running of the bank was transferred to the parliament of the day. Changing its name to its current form in 1866, the Bank has a long and interesting history.

4. Twinings Tea

Founder Thomas Twining began one of the first companies to introduce tea drinking to the English in 1706. After setting up shop on the strand in London called Tom’s Coffee House, he began selling his tea. This gave him a competitive edge on his coffee house rivals, of whom there were many, and the company never looked back. Only bought by the very wealthy, his Gunpowder Green Tea was selling for a price that is equivalent to $260 USD per 100g today. Interestingly, the original premises are still in existence today.

5. IBM

A newer company, but one that just celebrated a big birthday is IBM, who hit the 100 year mark last month. International Business Machines – or its predecessor, the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company – was founded on June 16, 1911 by the financier Charles Ranlett Flint. The firm suffered a near disaster in the 1980s when it failed to keep up with others’ innovations. However, a new CEO, Louis V Gerstner, turned the company around during the 1990s, coinciding with the rise of the internet. IBM has never looked back since. Image credit: facebook

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