…succeeds or fails together (sorry, that’s the best I could come up with). But that’s the essence of how this family operates their eclectic stores throughout Ireland, according that country’s Independent.ie.

The siblings who run the company make it a point to not take individual credit when sales are up or individual blame when sales are down. “We’ve all essentially got one voice and one vote. It’s important with us that no one has tried to push an individual agenda or individual authority…So we have a very flat structure and respect for what each other does,” the head honcho brother says.

That attitude seems to be working because even in Ireland’s down economy, their Avoca locations are doing quite well, with sales projected to equal or exceed last year’s take of 50 million euros. It’s hard to call the Avoca retail locales “stores” since they also include gourmet food, an artisan bakery, weaving mill, clothing, accessories, a design studio, cafe and gardening nurseries that are mostly set in large landscaped grounds. Like I said, eclectic.

But the siblings who run the outlets are rather eclectic as well. With no real boss to oversee things, it sounds like the business runs more on respect than on personal agendas. That’s something you can’t always do if you’re a sole proprietor. But instilling a team attitude with your associates or partners is well worth pursuing, especially in these crazy economic times. Read my headline and first sentence again. Maybe it’s time to think about how working together will prevent your retail efforts from falling apart.