Clothing and laundry · Metro area · Kentucky
Clothing and shoe stores in the Lexington-Fayette, KY metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for clothing and shoe stores in the Lexington-Fayette, KY metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 38 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #280 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 6 scored metro areas based in Kentucky
- Listings
- 408
- 180 chain locations (44%)
- Official establishments
- 189
- −17.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $409.5M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,894 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1M
- 21% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.9
- 17% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 535,174
- +3.4% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Lexington-Fayette metro 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 Lexington-Fayette metro 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
Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in the Lexington-Fayette metro area comes to about $409.5M a year: $1,894 per household, 8% below the U.S. average. That is about $1M of household spending for each store on map listings, 21% 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 408 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in the Lexington-Fayette metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 180 are chain locations, or 44%, against 44% across the U.S. That is 18.9 per 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 16.2.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Lexington-Fayette metro area was 189 in 2023, down 17.0% from 2019. That is one for every 1,144 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Official counts list 345 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $649K have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Lexington-Fayette metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Lexington-Fayette metro area grew 3.4%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For clothing and shoe stores, the Lexington-Fayette metro area has a Groundwork market score of 38 (lower middle): #280 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 6 scored metro areas based in Kentucky.
How the Lexington-Fayette metro area compares
The same measures for Kentucky 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 | Lexington-Fayette metro area | Kentucky | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 18.9 | 15.0 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1M | $1.2M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,144 | 1,552 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −17.0% | −15.5% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.4% | +2.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,894 | $1,761 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $71,966 | $63,726 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 38 | 42 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 189−17.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,546
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $52M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 345Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 408180 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 322The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $649K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Lexington-Fayette metro 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 Lexington-Fayette metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 535,174+3.4% since 2020
- Households
- 216,273
- Median age
- 38.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 59%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,470 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 355
- Median household income
- $71,966+22.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $102,014
- Median home value
- $281,300
- Jobs located here
- 289,772
- Daytime population
- 573,681Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Lexington-Fayette metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Lexington-Fayette metro 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 Kentucky
Every Kentucky market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Kentucky for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Kentucky (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Lexington-Fayette metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Kentucky
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 65 | 1,301 | 14.3 | $1.4M | +2.7% | #94 of 387 |
| Clarksville, TN-KY | 57 | 170 | 13.6 | $1.3M | +8.5% | #161 of 387 |
| 1Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | 52 | 849 | 15.2 | $1.3M | +2.9% | #196 of 387 |
| 2Elizabethtown, KY | 44 | 89 | 17.6 | $1M | +2.4% | #239 of 387 |
| 3Bowling Green, KY | 42 | 117 | 16.0 | $1.1M | +9.5% | #255 of 387 |
| 4Owensboro, KY | 40 | 76 | 16.8 | $1.1M | +1.3% | #270 of 387 |
| 5Lexington-Fayette, KY | 38 | 408 | 18.9 | $1M | +3.4% | #280 of 387 |
| Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 34 | 216 | 14.2 | $1.2M | −2.6% | #295 of 387 |
| 6Paducah, KY-IL | 10 | 114 | 27.3 | $645K | −1.2% | #385 of 387 |
Other business types in the Lexington-Fayette metro 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 laundry37
- Clothing and shoe stores38
- Laundromats40
- Dry cleaners35
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Lexington-Fayette, KY metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 408 clothing and shoe stores in the Lexington-Fayette metro area. 180 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 189 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 17.0% from 2019. Official counts also show 345 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Lexington-Fayette, KY metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $409.5M a year, or $1,894 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 408 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1M 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 216,273 households in the Lexington-Fayette metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Lexington-Fayette, KY metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Lexington-Fayette metro area has 18.9 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1M, 21% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Lexington-Fayette metro area would have about 322, against 408 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,144 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 17.0% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Lexington-Fayette, KY metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Lexington-Fayette metro area at 535,174 people in 2025, up 3.4% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 216,273 households. Median household income in the Lexington-Fayette metro area is $71,966, 11% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.6%, 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. 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 Lexington-Fayette metro area scores 38 for clothing and shoe stores (lower middle), #280 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Lexington-Fayette metro 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 Lexington-Fayette metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lexington-Fayette metro 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 Lexington-Fayette metro 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.