Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · Small-town market · Iowa

Clothing and shoe stores in the Storm Lake, IA area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for clothing and shoe stores in the Storm Lake, IA area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #443 of 536 scored small-town markets
#13 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa

Listings
17
8 chain locations (47%)
Official establishments
10
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$14.5M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,915 a household
Spending per listing
$850K
33% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
22.5
39% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
20,449
−1.7% since 2020

See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Storm Lake 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 Storm Lake 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 Storm Lake area scores 30 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores, ranking #443 of 536 scored small-town markets and #13 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.

Households in the Storm Lake area spend about $14.5M a year on clothing, shoes and related services, or $1,915 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. That is about $850K of household spending for each store on map listings, 33% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores.

The Storm Lake area has 17 clothing and shoe stores on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 8 are chain locations, or 47%, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 22.5, 39% above the U.S. rate of 16.2.

In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in the Storm Lake area classed as clothing and shoe stores. That is one for every 755 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Storm Lake area declined 1.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Storm Lake 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 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 Storm Lake, IA area compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureStorm Lake areaIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households22.515.616.2
Spending per listing$850K$1.3M$1.3M
Households per official establishment7551,4991,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−14.3%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.7%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,915$1,967$2,055
Median household income$71,719$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score3048

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
10
Employees, 2023
53
Annual payroll, 2023
$684K
One-person businesses, 2023
6Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
178 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
11The 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 Storm Lake 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 Storm Lake area

Population, 2025 estimate
20,449−1.7% since 2020
Households
7,546
Median age
36.5
Homes lived in by their owners
73%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
575 sq. mi.
People per square mile
36
Median household income
$71,719+25.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$94,361
Median home value
$159,500
Jobs located here
11,467
Daytime population
22,374Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Storm Lake 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 Storm Lake 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 Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

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

Top small-town markets in Iowa

Small-town markets in Iowa ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Marshalltown, IA75117.1$2.6M−0.5%#57 of 536
2Muscatine, IA661911.0$1.7M−3.0%#132 of 536
3Le Mars, IA651110.7$1.9M0.0%#138 of 536
4Clinton, IA602412.3$1.5M−0.9%#182 of 536
5Pella, IA602015.0$1.3M+2.3%#185 of 536
6Fort Madison, IA571812.6$1.4M−3.6%#213 of 536
7Oskaloosa, IA551314.9$1.2M−1.2%#231 of 536
8Ottumwa, IA502517.9$995K−0.3%#278 of 536
9Fort Dodge, IA453120.2$897K−0.4%#317 of 536
10Mason City, IA404218.5$1M−1.5%#357 of 536
13Storm Lake, IA301722.5$850K−1.7%#443 of 536

Other business types in the Storm Lake area

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

Questions

How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Storm Lake, IA area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 17 clothing and shoe stores in the Storm Lake area. 8 of them (47%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023. Official counts list 6 one-person businesses without payroll.

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

About $14.5M a year, or $1,915 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 17 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $850K 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 7,546 households in the Storm Lake area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Storm Lake, IA area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?

The Storm Lake area has 22.5 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 39% above the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $850K, 33% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Storm Lake area would have about 11, against 17 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 755 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S.

How fast is the Storm Lake, IA area growing?

Population estimates put the Storm Lake area at 20,449 people in 2025, down 1.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,546 households. Median household income in the Storm Lake area is $71,719, 11% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.6%, 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 Storm Lake area scores 30 for clothing and shoe stores (lower middle), #443 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 Storm Lake 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 Storm Lake area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Storm Lake 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 Storm Lake 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.