Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · Small-town market · Illinois

Clothing and shoe stores in the Sterling, IL area

How the Sterling, IL area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 55 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #230 of 536 scored small-town markets
#9 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois

Listings
34
16 chain locations (47%)
Official establishments
6
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$42.1M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,819 a household
Spending per listing
$1.2M
3% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
14.7
9% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
54,121
−2.6% since 2020

See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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

Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in the Sterling area comes to about $42.1M a year: $1,819 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. Spread across 34 clothing and shoe stores, that is $1.2M per store, 3% below 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 34 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in the Sterling area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 47% of them, against 44% across the U.S. That is 14.7 per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.

Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Sterling area in 2023. That is one for every 3,853 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Official counts also show 38 one-person businesses without payroll.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Sterling area declined 2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores in the Sterling area is 55 (upper middle), #230 of 536 scored small-town markets and #9 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois.

How the Sterling area compares

The same measures for Illinois 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 Sterling, IL area compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureSterling areaIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households14.715.916.2
Spending per listing$1.2M$1.3M$1.3M
Households per official establishment3,8531,3811,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−15.0%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.6%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,819$2,141$2,055
Median household income$67,500$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score5548

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
6
Employees, 2023
31
Annual payroll, 2023
$532K
One-person businesses, 2023
38Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
3416 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
33The 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area

Population, 2025 estimate
54,121−2.6% since 2020
Households
23,120
Median age
43.5
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
684 sq. mi.
People per square mile
80
Median household income
$67,500+24.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$86,592
Median home value
$127,100
Jobs located here
20,819
Daytime population
50,543Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Sterling 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 Sterling area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Clothing and shoe stores across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Illinois for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Illinois, with the Sterling area marked.

Top small-town markets in Illinois

Small-town markets in Illinois ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Rochelle, IL79178.2$2.4M−0.7%#34 of 536
2Pontiac, IL71149.6$2M−2.1%#93 of 536
3Centralia, IL66117.1$2.5M−3.4%#125 of 536
4Lincoln, IL61108.9$2.1M−2.5%#169 of 536
5Dixon, IL601914.2$1.3M−3.4%#184 of 536
6Canton, IL581712.3$1.4M−2.0%#200 of 536
7Galesburg, IL552411.4$1.5M−4.1%#227 of 536
8Marion-Herrin, IL554314.8$1.2M+0.2%#229 of 536
9Sterling, IL553414.7$1.2M−2.6%#230 of 536
10Taylorville, IL541813.2$1.4M−1.5%#240 of 536

Other business types in the Sterling area

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

Clothing and laundry

Funeral services

Questions

How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Sterling, IL area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 34 clothing and shoe stores in the Sterling area. 16 of them (47%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023. Another 38 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

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

About $42.1M a year, or $1,819 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 34 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.2M 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 23,120 households in the Sterling area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Sterling, IL area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?

The Sterling area has 14.7 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.2M, 3% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Sterling area would have about 33, against 34 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,853 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S.

How fast is the Sterling, IL area growing?

Population estimates put the Sterling area at 54,121 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,120 households. Median household income in the Sterling area is $67,500, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.5%, 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 Sterling area scores 55 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #230 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sterling area?

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

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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.