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TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4

INTRODUCTION 5

KONGO GUMI ENVIRONMENT 7

Feudal Japan 8

The Restoration of Edo 8

The Meiji Restoration 9

World War 1 12

The Mid War Period 13

World War 2 15

The Occupation of Japan and Post War Reconstruction 16

The Economic Miracle 17

The Lost Decade 18

Global Financial Crisis 19

Natural Disasters 20

Abenomics 21

STRATEGIES KONGO GUMI USED TO SURVIVE TURBULENCE 23

Kongo Gumi in the 20th Century 23

Meiji restoration 23

The Mid War Period 24

World war 11 24

KONGO GUMI WOULD HAVE SURVIVED IF: 25

WOULD KONGO GUMI HAVE SURVIVED IF IT MADE IT THROUGH TO THE ABENOMICS ERA? 26

LESSONS FROM KONGO GUMI 27

CONCLUSION 28

REFERENCES 31

Appendix 1 – Infographic of Japan’s timeline

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Kongo Gumi was a success as it operated in a stable industry. The belief system has survived for thousands of years and has many millions of adherents. With this firm foundation, Kongo had survived some tumultuous times. The temple construction had until recently been a reliable mainstay, contributing 80% of Kongo Gumi's $67.6 million in 2004 revenues.

The story of Kongo Gumi suggests that firms should blend elements of conservatism and flexibility. This means that firms should stay in the same business for more than a millennium and vary from the principle of succession as needed to preserve the company. Experts felt that Kongo Gumi's demise too held many valuable lessons for family-owned businesses. Family-owned businesses could learn a lot from the business practices followed by Kongo Gumi. Lessons from Kongo Gumi's long tenure and ultimate failure suggest that firms need to pick a stable industry and create flexible