Food and drink · County · Virginia
Bakeries and dessert shops in Norfolk city, VA
How Norfolk city, VA compares with other counties and the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 44 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,138 of 1,889 scored counties
#51 of 79 scored counties in Virginia
- Listings
- 73
- 21 chain locations (29%)
- Official establishments
- 54
- All snack bars and retail bakeries · +35.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $339.3M
- On food away from home · $3,573 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.6M
- 12% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.7
- 21% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 231,013
- −2.9% since 2020
See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Norfolk city
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 Norfolk city. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Map listings as of September 2026 show 73 bakeries and dessert shops in Norfolk city. 21 of them (29%) are chain locations, against 35% across the U.S. That is 7.7 per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.
At $3,573 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in Norfolk city spend about $339.3M a year on food away from home. That works out to $4.6M per shop, 12% above 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.
Official counts show 54 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Norfolk city in 2023, up 35.0% from 2019. That is one for every 1,759 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count takes in all snack bars and retail bakeries, not only bakeries and dessert shops: coffee shops and cafes are counted too. Official counts also show 9 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $125K has gone to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Norfolk city.
Population estimates put the population change in Norfolk city from 2020 to 2025 at −2.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For bakeries and dessert shops, Norfolk city has a Groundwork market score of 44 (lower middle): #1,138 of 1,889 scored counties and #51 of 79 scored counties in Virginia.
How Norfolk city compares
The same measures for Virginia 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.
| Measure | Norfolk city | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.7 | 8.5 | 9.8 |
| Spending per listing | $4.6M | $5.2M | $4.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries) | 1,759 | 2,020 | 1,369 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +35.0% | +21.9% | +24.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.9% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,573 | $4,372 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $66,109 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 44 | 80 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 40 → 54All snack bars and retail bakeries · +35.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 501
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $10M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 9All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 7321 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 82The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $125K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Norfolk city, 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 Norfolk city
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 231,013−2.9% since 2020
- Households
- 94,965
- Median age
- 35.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 46%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 53 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 4,385
- Median household income
- $66,109+28.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $91,610
- Median home value
- $289,900
- Jobs located here
- 130,869
- Daytime population
- 273,887Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Norfolk city?
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 Norfolk city. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardBakeries and dessert shops across Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Norfolk city marked.
Top counties in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1New Kent County, VA | 94 | 5 | 5.4 | $8.9M | +21.2% | #3 of 1,889 |
| 2Stafford County, VA | 94 | 34 | 6.5 | $8.2M | +8.3% | #4 of 1,889 |
| 3Orange County, VA | 91 | 9 | 6.1 | $7.1M | +10.1% | #12 of 1,889 |
| 4Isle of Wight County, VA | 90 | 9 | 5.7 | $7.4M | +6.7% | #14 of 1,889 |
| 5Chesterfield County, VA | 90 | 90 | 6.4 | $7M | +8.7% | #16 of 1,889 |
| 6Louisa County, VA | 89 | 9 | 5.8 | $7M | +13.6% | #23 of 1,889 |
| 7Spotsylvania County, VA | 89 | 37 | 7.1 | $6.7M | +10.5% | #24 of 1,889 |
| 8Suffolk city, VA | 88 | 26 | 6.9 | $6.1M | +10.4% | #28 of 1,889 |
| 9Fluvanna County, VA | 87 | 5 | 4.8 | $8.9M | +6.2% | #29 of 1,889 |
| 10Frederick County, VA | 86 | 28 | 7.9 | $5.6M | +8.8% | #40 of 1,889 |
| 51Norfolk city, VA | 44 | 73 | 7.7 | $4.6M | −2.9% | #1,138 of 1,889 |
Other business types in Norfolk city
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes20
- Sit-down restaurants20
- Fast food and sandwich shops22
- Pizza34
- Coffee shops and cafes34
- Bakeries and dessert shops44
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many bakeries and dessert shops are in Norfolk city, VA?
There are 73 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings in Norfolk city as of September 2026. 21 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 54 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023, up 35.0% from 2019. That count covers all snack bars and retail bakeries (coffee shops and cafes included), not only bakeries and dessert shops. Another 9 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Norfolk city, VA spend on food away from home?
About $339.3M a year, or $3,573 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 73 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $4.6M 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 94,965 households in Norfolk city and national spending patterns by income.
How does Norfolk city, VA compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?
Norfolk city has 7.7 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $4.6M, 12% above the U.S. figure of $4.1M. At the national ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending, Norfolk city would have about 82, against 73 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,759 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count rose 35.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +24.6% for the U.S.
How fast is Norfolk city, VA growing?
Population estimates put Norfolk city at 231,013 people in 2025, down 2.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 94,965 households. Median household income in Norfolk city is $66,109, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.1%, 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. Norfolk city scores 44 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #1,138 of 1,889 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Norfolk city. 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 Norfolk city
Screening a site or an acquisition in Norfolk city?
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 Norfolk city. 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.