Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · County · Delaware

Clothing and shoe stores in Kent County, DE

The clothing and shoe stores in Kent County, DE, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 57 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #788 of 2,087 scored counties
#1 of 3 scored counties in Delaware

Listings
87
46 chain locations (53%)
Official establishments
51
+4.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$131.3M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,838 a household
Spending per listing
$1.5M
19% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
12.2
25% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
194,786
+6.8% since 2020

See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in Kent County

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 Kent 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

At $1,838 per household (11% below the U.S. average), households in Kent County spend about $131.3M a year on clothing, shoes and related services. That is about $1.5M of household spending for each store on map listings, 19% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores.

There are 87 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in Kent County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 53% of them, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 12.2, 25% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in Kent County was 51 in 2023, up 4.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,400 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Official counts also show 149 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $300K have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in Kent County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Kent County grew 6.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Kent County scores 57 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores, ranking #788 of 2,087 scored counties and #1 of 3 scored counties in Delaware.

How Kent County compares

The same measures for Delaware 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.

Clothing and shoe stores in Kent County, DE compared with Delaware and the U.S.
MeasureKent CountyDelawareU.S.
Listings per 10k households12.216.616.2
Spending per listing$1.5M$1.2M$1.3M
Households per official establishment1,4009951,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+4.1%−7.5%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+6.8%+6.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,838$2,027$2,055
Median household income$74,477$84,954$80,734
Groundwork market score5745

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
49 → 51+4.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
567
Annual payroll, 2023
$11.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
149Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
8746 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
103The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$300K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in Kent 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.

Population and households in Kent County

Population, 2025 estimate
194,786+6.8% since 2020
Households
71,424
Median age
39.6
Homes lived in by their owners
73%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
586 sq. mi.
People per square mile
320
Median household income
$74,477+22.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$92,801
Median home value
$316,600
Jobs located here
66,799
Daytime population
177,320Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Kent 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 clothing and shoe stores on map listings by name and distance.

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Clothing and shoe stores across Delaware

Every Delaware market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Delaware for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Delaware, with Kent County marked.

Top counties in Delaware

Counties in Delaware ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Kent County, DE578712.2$1.5M+6.8%#788 of 2,087
2New Castle County, DE5433414.9$1.4M+3.0%#897 of 2,087
3Sussex County, DE4124823.3$847K+16.1%#1,381 of 2,087

Other business types in Kent County

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

Questions

How many clothing and shoe stores are in Kent County, DE?

As of September 2026, map listings count 87 clothing and shoe stores in Kent County. 46 of them (53%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 51 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, up 4.1% from 2019. Another 149 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Kent County, DE spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $131.3M a year, or $1,838 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 87 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.5M per store. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which clothing and shoe stores share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 71,424 households in Kent County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Kent County, DE compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?

Kent County has 12.2 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.5M, 19% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, Kent County would have about 103, against 87 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,400 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.1% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.

How fast is Kent County, DE growing?

Population estimates put Kent County at 194,786 people in 2025, up 6.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 71,424 households. Median household income in Kent County is $74,477, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.3%, 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. Kent County scores 57 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #788 of 2,087 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Kent County. 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 Kent County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Kent 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 Kent 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.