Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Arkansas

Bakeries and dessert shops in Columbia County, AR

The bakeries and dessert shops in Columbia County, AR, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 15 out of 100: Low

Ranked #1,853 of 1,889 scored counties
#36 of 41 scored counties in Arkansas

Listings
8
3 chain locations (38%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$26.4M
On food away from home · $3,145 a household
Spending per listing
$3.3M
20% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
9.5
3% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
21,894
−3.7% since 2020

See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Columbia County

The site report maps the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Columbia County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Columbia County scores 15 (low) on the Groundwork market score for bakeries and dessert shops, ranking #1,853 of 1,889 scored counties and #36 of 41 scored counties in Arkansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 8 bakeries and dessert shops in Columbia County. Of those, 3 are chain locations, or 38%, against 35% across the U.S. That is 9.5 per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.

At $3,145 per household (23% below the U.S. average), households in Columbia County spend about $26.4M a year on food away from home. That works out to $3.3M per shop, 20% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. That spending covers all food away from home, which bakeries and dessert shops share with other businesses in the trade.

There is no official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Columbia County: counts under 3 aren’t published. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Columbia County declined 3.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Columbia County compares

The same measures for Arkansas and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the bakeries and dessert shops counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Bakeries and dessert shops in Columbia County, AR compared with Arkansas and the U.S.
MeasureColumbia CountyArkansasU.S.
Listings per 10k households9.59.09.8
Spending per listing$3.3M$3.8M$4.1M
Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries)n/a1,8841,369
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+47.1%+24.6%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.7%+3.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,145$3,400$4,070
Median household income$55,334$60,773$80,734
Groundwork market score1542

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/aAll snack bars and retail bakeries
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
83 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
6The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Columbia County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3. These official figures cover all snack bars and retail bakeries, not only bakeries and dessert shops.

Population and households in Columbia County

Population, 2025 estimate
21,894−3.7% since 2020
Households
8,409
Median age
36.5
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
766 sq. mi.
People per square mile
29
Median household income
$55,334+52.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$69,996
Median home value
$152,100
Jobs located here
7,940
Daytime population
21,908Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Columbia County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Columbia County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Bakeries and dessert shops across Arkansas

Every Arkansas market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Arkansas for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Arkansas, with Columbia County marked.

Top counties in Arkansas

Counties in Arkansas ranked for bakeries and dessert shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Lonoke County, AR72186.3$5.8M+3.5%#219 of 1,889
2Saline County, AR72377.4$5.1M+7.6%#224 of 1,889
3Greene County, AR64116.1$5.3M+3.4%#422 of 1,889
4Crawford County, AR64166.9$4.9M+4.1%#426 of 1,889
5Benton County, AR5713111.7$3.7M+16.0%#673 of 1,889
6Crittenden County, AR5684.4$7.1M−3.9%#681 of 1,889
7Johnson County, AR5665.8$4.9M+2.0%#692 of 1,889
8Baxter County, AR54105.2$5.9M+3.1%#764 of 1,889
9Randolph County, AR4756.8$4.4M+1.5%#1,030 of 1,889
10Faulkner County, AR46438.7$4.1M+8.2%#1,076 of 1,889
36Columbia County, AR1589.5$3.3M−3.7%#1,853 of 1,889

Other business types in Columbia County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many bakeries and dessert shops are in Columbia County, AR?

There are 8 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in Columbia County as of September 2026. 3 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. No official count is published for snack bars and retail bakeries in Columbia County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in Columbia County, AR spend on food away from home?

About $26.4M a year, or $3,145 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 8 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $3.3M per shop. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 8,409 households in Columbia County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Columbia County, AR compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?

Columbia County has 9.5 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $3.3M, 20% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Columbia County would have about 6, against 8 on map listings.

How fast is Columbia County, AR growing?

Population estimates put Columbia County at 21,894 people in 2025, down 3.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 8,409 households. Median household income in Columbia County is $55,334, 31% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 52.9%, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Columbia County scores 15 for bakeries and dessert shops (low), #1,853 of 1,889 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Columbia County. It maps the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for bakeries and dessert shops · All 56 business types in Columbia County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Columbia County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Columbia County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.