family business
Relatives running together
A family business is a company owned and operated by members of the same family, often across multiple generations.
The term implies both continuity and informality—decisions may happen around the dinner table rather than in boardrooms.
She joined the family business after college.
Family business can also refer euphemistically to private matters or, in crime contexts, organized crime operations run by blood relatives.
Successive family rulers
- lineageDescent from progenitors
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
generations · patriarch · matriarch · descendants · forebears · progenitor · scion · genealogy
Inherited cultural legacy
- customsTraditional practices or import taxes
- valuesPrinciples held worthwhile
- heirloomsObjects passed through family lines
- time-honoredRespected due to age
continuity · nostalgia · generations · homestead · rituals · culture · stewardship · preservation
Small owner-operated enterprise
- boutiqueSmall specialized retail shop
- localOf this area
- neighborhoodResidential area nearby
- handcraftedMade manually, not machined
craftsmanship · bespoke · custom · homemade · shop · microenterprise · independent · self-employed
Solid or resolute
- companyCommercial enterprise or guests
- corporationLegally separate business entity
- startupNew business enterprise
- franchiseLicensed business operation
partnership · proprietorship · SME · conglomerate · subsidiary · holding · venture · entrepreneurship
Following in order
- heirOne who receives legacy
- estateProperty and grounds
- bequestGift left by will
- willFaculty of deliberate choice
testament · probate · beneficiary · executor · trust · birthright · primogeniture · transfer
dynasty
Successive family rulers
bloodline · generations · patriarch · matriarch · descendants · forebears · progenitor · scion · genealogy · clan
heritage
Inherited cultural legacy
- customsTraditional practices or import taxes
- valuesPrinciples held worthwhile
- heirloomsObjects passed through family lines
time-honored · continuity · nostalgia · generations · homestead · rituals · culture · stewardship · preservation · craftsmanship
mom-and-pop
Small owner-operated enterprise
- boutiqueSmall specialized retail shop
- localOf this area
- neighborhoodResidential area nearby
handcrafted · craftsmanship · bespoke · custom · homemade · shop · microenterprise · independent · self-employed · storefront
firm
Solid or resolute
- companyCommercial enterprise or guests
- corporationLegally separate business entity
- startupNew business enterprise
franchise · partnership · proprietorship · SME · conglomerate · subsidiary · holding · venture · entrepreneurship · management
succession
Following in order
will · testament · probate · beneficiary · executor · trust · birthright · primogeniture · transfer · handover
nepotism
Preferring kin in hiring
- siblingsFellow offspring
- cousinsRelatives through shared grandparents
- in-lawsRelatives through marriage
relatives · filial · parentage · sons · daughters · brothers · sisters · spouses · uncle · aunt
- businessescompany, bank, bakery, enterprise, firm
- business fictioncorporate drama, boardroom drama, corporate intrigue, corporate crime, white collar crime
- family businesssuccession plan, succession planning, next generation, successor, leadership transition
- private companiesstartup, Ltd, LLC, partnership, sole proprietorship
- professional heritagetrade secrets, apprenticeship, master craftsman, journeyman
- microeconomymicroenterprise, microfinance, microloan, micro loan, local market
family businesspublic corporation
Government-owned commercial entity
public company · multinational corporation · government agency · cooperative · listed company
family, business, businessman, unfamiliar, familiarity, families, familial, businesslike, businesses