Clothing and laundry · Small-town market · Alabama
Clothing and shoe stores in the Fort Payne, AL area
The clothing and shoe stores in the Fort Payne, AL area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 44 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #322 of 536 scored small-town markets
#7 of 12 scored small-town markets based in Alabama
- Listings
- 37
- 6 chain locations (16%)
- Official establishments
- 15
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $40.7M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,555 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.1M
- 13% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 14.1
- 13% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 74,085
- +3.4% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Fort Payne area
The site report maps the clothing and shoe stores 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 Fort Payne area. 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 37 clothing and shoe stores in the Fort Payne area. Chain locations make up 16% of them, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 14.1, 13% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.
Households in the Fort Payne area spend about $40.7M a year on clothing, shoes and related services, or $1,555 per household, 24% below the U.S. average. Spread across 37 clothing and shoe stores, that is $1.1M per store, 13% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which clothing and shoe stores share with other businesses in the trade.
Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Fort Payne area in 2023. That is one for every 1,745 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Another 59 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Fort Payne area grew 3.4%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For clothing and shoe stores, the Fort Payne area has a Groundwork market score of 44 (lower middle): #322 of 536 scored small-town markets and #7 of 12 scored small-town markets based in Alabama.
How the Fort Payne area compares
The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all clothing, shoes and related services by the clothing and shoe stores 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 | Fort Payne area | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 14.1 | 17.6 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.1M | $1M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,745 | 1,169 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −7.5% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.4% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,555 | $1,778 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $51,204 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 44 | 26 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 15
- Employees, 2023
- 85
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 59Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 376 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 32The 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 in the Fort Payne 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 Fort Payne area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 74,085+3.4% since 2020
- Households
- 26,181
- Median age
- 40.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 78%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 777 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 93
- Median household income
- $51,204+26.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $68,235
- Median home value
- $152,700
- Jobs located here
- 22,918
- Daytime population
- 67,317Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Fort Payne 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 and shoe stores on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Fort Payne area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardClothing and shoe stores across Alabama
Every Alabama market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Alabama for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Alabama (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Fort Payne area marked.
Top small-town markets in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Ozark, AL | 66 | 14 | 7.1 | $2.3M | +1.3% | #127 of 536 |
| 2Scottsboro, AL | 63 | 21 | 9.6 | $1.7M | +3.3% | #156 of 536 |
| 3Talladega-Sylacauga, AL | 54 | 34 | 8.9 | $1.8M | 0.0% | #235 of 536 |
| 4Alexander City, AL | 49 | 22 | 12.9 | $1.3M | −0.8% | #283 of 536 |
| LaGrange, GA-AL | 49 | 59 | 14.6 | $1.1M | +3.0% | #286 of 536 |
| 5Cullman, AL | 48 | 57 | 16.1 | $1.1M | +6.7% | #294 of 536 |
| 6Enterprise, AL | 48 | 35 | 16.7 | $1.1M | +6.3% | #295 of 536 |
| 7Fort Payne, AL | 44 | 37 | 14.1 | $1.1M | +3.4% | #322 of 536 |
| 8Russellville, AL | 44 | 21 | 17.6 | $897K | +1.1% | #325 of 536 |
| 9Albertville, AL | 37 | 85 | 23.3 | $750K | +6.0% | #389 of 536 |
Other business types in the Fort Payne area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
- Clothing, shoes and laundry50
- Clothing and shoe stores44
- Laundromats
- Dry cleaners
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Fort Payne, AL area?
There are 37 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in the Fort Payne area as of September 2026. 6 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023. Official counts list 59 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Fort Payne, AL area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $40.7M a year, or $1,555 per household. That is 24% below the U.S. average (an index of 76, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 37 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.1M per store. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 26,181 households in the Fort Payne area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Fort Payne, AL area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Fort Payne area has 14.1 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.1M, 13% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Fort Payne area would have about 32, against 37 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,745 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S.
How fast is the Fort Payne, AL area growing?
Population estimates put the Fort Payne area at 74,085 people in 2025, up 3.4% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 26,181 households. The median household income in the Fort Payne area is $51,204 a year, 37% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.6% 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 Fort Payne area scores 44 for clothing and shoe stores (lower middle), #322 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 Fort Payne area. It maps the clothing and shoe stores 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 and shoe stores · All 56 business types in the Fort Payne area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fort Payne 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 Fort Payne 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.