Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · Small-town market · Iowa

Clothing, shoe and laundry businesses in the Carroll, IA area

The clothing, shoe and laundry businesses in the Carroll, IA area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 29 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #449 of 536 scored small-town markets
#14 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa

Listings
27
11 chain locations (41%)
Official establishments
11
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$16.8M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,910 a household
Spending per listing
$622K
29% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
30.7
32% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
20,303
−2.0% since 2020

See the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses around any address in the Carroll area

The site report maps the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses 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 the Carroll area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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

What this means

The Carroll area scores 29 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses, ranking #449 of 536 scored small-town markets and #14 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.

At $1,910 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in the Carroll area spend about $16.8M a year on clothing, shoes and related services. That is about $622K of household spending for each business on map listings, 29% below the U.S. figure of $880K.

The Carroll area has 27 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 11 of them (41%) are chain locations, against 37% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 30.7, 32% above the U.S. rate of 23.3.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores, laundromats and dry cleaners in the Carroll area was 11 in 2023. That is one for every 800 households, against one for every 1,008 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Carroll area declined 2.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Carroll area compares

The same measures for Iowa and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all clothing, shoes and related services by the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Clothing, shoes and laundry in Carroll, IA area compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureCarroll areaIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households30.720.823.3
Spending per listing$622K$947K$880K
Households per official establishment8001,3401,008
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−14.3%−12.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.0%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,910$1,967$2,055
Median household income$72,930$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score2955

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
11
Employees, 2023
60
Annual payroll, 2023
$895K
One-person businesses, 2023
18Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
2711 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
19The 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 clothing and shoe stores, laundromats and dry cleaners in the Carroll area, 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.

Population and households in the Carroll area

Population, 2025 estimate
20,303−2.0% since 2020
Households
8,801
Median age
41.6
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
570 sq. mi.
People per square mile
36
Median household income
$72,930+23.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$93,964
Median home value
$176,000
Jobs located here
10,716
Daytime population
20,571Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Carroll area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses on map listings by name and distance.

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

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Clothing, shoes and laundry across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Iowa for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses, numbered among those based in Iowa, with the Carroll area marked.

Top small-town markets in Iowa

Small-town markets in Iowa ranked for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Marshalltown, IA732113.6$1.4M−0.5%#79 of 536
2Muscatine, IA682514.4$1.3M−3.0%#111 of 536
3Pella, IA642518.8$1.1M+2.3%#145 of 536
4Le Mars, IA631817.5$1.1M0.0%#151 of 536
5Oskaloosa, IA601517.2$1.1M−1.2%#181 of 536
6Fort Madison, IA582416.8$1.1M−3.6%#204 of 536
7Clinton, IA573819.5$962K−0.9%#216 of 536
8Ottumwa, IA503525.0$711K−0.3%#272 of 536
9Fort Dodge, IA454126.7$678K−0.4%#318 of 536
10Mason City, IA425524.2$778K−1.5%#342 of 536
14Carroll, IA292730.7$622K−2.0%#449 of 536

Other business types in the Carroll area

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

Questions

How many clothing, shoe and laundry businesses are in the Carroll, IA area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 27 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses in the Carroll area. 11 of them (41%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and jewelry stores, laundromats and dry cleaners. Official counts show 11 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores, laundromats and dry cleaners in 2023. Official counts also show 18 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Carroll, IA area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $16.8M a year, or $1,910 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 27 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses on map listings, it comes to $622K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 8,801 households in the Carroll area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Carroll, IA area compare with the U.S. for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses?

The Carroll area has 30.7 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses per 10,000 households, 32% above the U.S. rate of 23.3. Spending per business is $622K, 29% below the U.S. figure of $880K. At the U.S. ratio of clothing, shoe and laundry businesses to household spending, the Carroll area would have about 19, against 27 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 800 households, against one for every 1,008 across the U.S.

How fast is the Carroll, IA area growing?

Population estimates put the Carroll area at 20,303 people in 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 8,801 households. The median household income in the Carroll area is $72,930 a year, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.2% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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. The Carroll area scores 29 for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses (lower middle), #449 of 536 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Carroll area. It maps the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses 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 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses · All 56 business types in the Carroll area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Carroll area?

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 the Carroll area. 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.