They survived World War II and lost decades, but not 2026. Japan's century-old businesses are disappearing at a record pace — SkimNews
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- Kadoya Sesame Mills, founded in 1858 and listed on the Jasdaq Securities Exchange since 2004, is going private through a tender offer backed by Japanese private equity firm Integral amid rising raw-material costs and geopolitical risks.
- Teikoku Databank reported 112 bankruptcies among Japanese businesses with more than 100 years of history in the first eight months of 2026 — a record pace.
- Sube Shoten, a tofu maker founded in 1877 during the Meiji era, ceased operations in May and began preparing to file for bankruptcy as low profit margins and a surge in raw-material costs clouded its outlook.
- Bankruptcies linked to higher prices jumped 23.8% to 556 in the first half of 2026, while labor-shortage bankruptcies climbed 12.4% to 227 and succession-related failures rose 16.9% to 312, according to Teikoku Databank.
- S&P Global Market Intelligence's Harumi Taguchi said that although post-pandemic inflation makes it easier to pass on costs than during deflation, many Japanese companies still cannot fully reflect higher expenses in sales prices — especially smaller, domestically focused firms.
- Oxford Economics' Shigeto Nagai said the century-old firms' long-term perspective, family ownership, and community roots historically built sound balance sheets, but owners now "cannot foresee a future of sustained high profits" and "fear they will gradually fall into decline."
- Alvarez & Marsal's Paul Aversano said it is the combination of a weaker yen, corporate governance reforms, activist pressure, succession challenges, inflation, tariffs, labor costs, and interest rates — rather than any single factor — driving boards to reassess their options.
Why it matters: Sube Shoten's shutdown after 149 years shows even Meiji-era companies with strong balance sheets are folding under a 23.8% surge in price-driven bankruptcies. The Kadoya take-private shows some century-old firms are choosing PE buyouts over staying public as succession and cost pressures mount.
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