Clothing and laundry · Small-town market · Minnesota
Clothing and shoe stores in the Albert Lea, MN area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for clothing and shoe stores in the Albert Lea, MN area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 47 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #300 of 536 scored small-town markets
#14 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota
- Listings
- 22
- 10 chain locations (45%)
- Official establishments
- 7
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $24.1M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,875 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.1M
- 14% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 17.1
- 6% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 30,440
- −1.5% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Albert Lea 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 Albert Lea 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
At $1,875 per household (9% below the U.S. average), households in the Albert Lea area spend about $24.1M a year on clothing, shoes and related services. Spread across 22 clothing and shoe stores, that is $1.1M per store, 14% 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 22 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in the Albert Lea area as of September 2026. Of those, 10 are chain locations, or 45%, against 44% across the U.S. That is 17.1 per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 16.2.
In 2023, official counts showed 7 businesses with payroll in the Albert Lea area classed as clothing and shoe stores. That is one for every 1,835 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Official counts list 26 one-person businesses without payroll.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Albert Lea area declined 1.5%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores in the Albert Lea area is 47 (lower middle), #300 of 536 scored small-town markets and #14 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota.
How the Albert Lea area compares
The same measures for Minnesota 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 | Albert Lea area | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 17.1 | 14.0 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.1M | $1.6M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,835 | 1,495 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −13.8% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.5% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,875 | $2,183 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $71,023 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 47 | 67 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7
- Employees, 2023
- 24
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $279K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 26Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 2210 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 19The 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 Albert Lea 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 Albert Lea area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 30,440−1.5% since 2020
- Households
- 12,846
- Median age
- 45.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 707 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 43
- Median household income
- $71,023+32.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $93,926
- Median home value
- $171,100
- Jobs located here
- 11,051
- Daytime population
- 27,708Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Albert Lea 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 Albert Lea 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 Minnesota
Every Minnesota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Minnesota for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Minnesota (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Albert Lea area marked.
Top small-town markets in Minnesota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Austin, MN | 84 | 12 | 7.6 | $2.5M | +2.3% | #15 of 536 |
| 2Faribault-Northfield, MN | 82 | 29 | 12.3 | $1.7M | +4.2% | #22 of 536 |
| 3Winona, MN | 77 | 22 | 10.9 | $1.8M | +1.8% | #44 of 536 |
| Wahpeton, ND-MN | 74 | 8 | 8.4 | $2.3M | 0.0% | #66 of 536 |
| 4Hutchinson, MN | 72 | 18 | 11.8 | $1.7M | −0.3% | #89 of 536 |
| 5Grand Rapids, MN | 70 | 19 | 10.2 | $1.8M | +0.9% | #98 of 536 |
| 6Fergus Falls, MN | 65 | 37 | 14.7 | $1.3M | +1.6% | #144 of 536 |
| 7Brainerd, MN | 61 | 70 | 16.6 | $1.2M | +4.3% | #177 of 536 |
| 8Red Wing, MN | 58 | 33 | 16.7 | $1.2M | +1.3% | #204 of 536 |
| 9Marshall, MN | 57 | 18 | 17.8 | $1.1M | +1.0% | #217 of 536 |
| 14Albert Lea, MN | 47 | 22 | 17.1 | $1.1M | −1.5% | #300 of 536 |
Other business types in the Albert Lea 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 laundry47
- Clothing and shoe stores47
- Laundromats29
- Dry cleaners
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Albert Lea, MN area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 22 clothing and shoe stores in the Albert Lea area. 10 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 7 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023. Official counts also show 26 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Albert Lea, MN area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $24.1M a year, or $1,875 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 22 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.1M 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 12,846 households in the Albert Lea area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Albert Lea, MN area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Albert Lea area has 17.1 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.1M, 14% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Albert Lea area would have about 19, against 22 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,835 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S.
How fast is the Albert Lea, MN area growing?
Population estimates put the Albert Lea area at 30,440 people in 2025, down 1.5% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 12,846 households. Median household income in the Albert Lea area is $71,023, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 32.4%, 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 Albert Lea area scores 47 for clothing and shoe stores (lower middle), #300 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 Albert Lea 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 Albert Lea area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Albert Lea 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 Albert Lea 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.