Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · County · Minnesota

Clothing and shoe stores in St. Louis County, MN

How St. Louis County, MN compares with other counties and the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,363 of 2,087 scored counties
#48 of 58 scored counties in Minnesota

Listings
136
71 chain locations (52%)
Official establishments
69
−15.8% since 2019
Household spending a year
$166.1M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,907 a household
Spending per listing
$1.2M
4% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
15.6
4% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
200,518
+0.2% since 2020

See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in St. Louis 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 St. Louis County. 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

Households in St. Louis County spend about $166.1M a year on clothing, shoes and related services, or $1,907 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. Spread across 136 clothing and shoe stores, that is $1.2M per store, 4% 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 136 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in St. Louis County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 52% of them, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 15.6, 4% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.

In 2023, official counts showed 69 businesses with payroll in St. Louis County classed as clothing and shoe stores, down 15.8% from 2019. That is one for every 1,263 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Another 105 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $789K have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in St. Louis County.

Population estimates put the population change in St. Louis County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For clothing and shoe stores, St. Louis County has a Groundwork market score of 41 (lower middle): #1,363 of 2,087 scored counties and #48 of 58 scored counties in Minnesota.

How St. Louis County 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.

Clothing and shoe stores in St. Louis County, MN compared with Minnesota and the U.S.
MeasureSt. Louis CountyMinnesotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households15.614.016.2
Spending per listing$1.2M$1.6M$1.3M
Households per official establishment1,2631,4951,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−15.8%−13.8%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.2%+2.1%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,907$2,183$2,055
Median household income$70,069$89,062$80,734
Groundwork market score4167

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
82 → 69−15.8% over the period
Employees, 2023
741
Annual payroll, 2023
$15.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
105Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
13671 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
131The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$789K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in St. Louis 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 St. Louis County

Population, 2025 estimate
200,518+0.2% since 2020
Households
87,115
Median age
42.5
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
6,248 sq. mi.
People per square mile
32
Median household income
$70,069+25.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$93,368
Median home value
$221,400
Jobs located here
98,963
Daytime population
212,532Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in St. Louis 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 St. Louis County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Clothing and shoe stores across Minnesota

Every Minnesota market ranked →

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

Top counties in Minnesota

Counties in Minnesota ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Sherburne County, MN94215.9$3.9M+6.8%#7 of 2,087
2Carver County, MN93266.3$4.2M+6.6%#12 of 2,087
3Scott County, MN91376.7$3.8M+5.1%#20 of 2,087
4Isanti County, MN87127.4$2.8M+7.3%#59 of 2,087
5Clay County, MN86114.2$4.8M+3.6%#61 of 2,087
6Cass County, MN8375.4$3.5M+4.2%#104 of 2,087
7Dodge County, MN8356.2$3.5M+2.3%#105 of 2,087
8Carlton County, MN8264.3$4.6M+1.4%#116 of 2,087
9Chisago County, MN82219.8$2.3M+4.3%#135 of 2,087
10Pine County, MN8164.9$3.8M+5.5%#140 of 2,087
48St. Louis County, MN4113615.6$1.2M+0.2%#1,363 of 2,087

Other business types in St. Louis County

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

Questions

How many clothing and shoe stores are in St. Louis County, MN?

As of September 2026, map listings count 136 clothing and shoe stores in St. Louis County. 71 of them (52%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 69 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 15.8% from 2019. Official counts list 105 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in St. Louis County, MN spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $166.1M a year, or $1,907 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 136 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 87,115 households in St. Louis County and national spending patterns by income.

How does St. Louis County, MN compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?

St. Louis County has 15.6 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.2M, 4% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, St. Louis County would have about 131, against 136 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,263 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 15.8% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.

How fast is St. Louis County, MN growing?

Population estimates put St. Louis County at 200,518 people in 2025, up 0.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 87,115 households. Median household income in St. Louis County is $70,069, 13% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.9%, 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. St. Louis County scores 41 for clothing and shoe stores (lower middle), #1,363 of 2,087 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in St. Louis 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 St. Louis County

Screening a site or an acquisition in St. Louis 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 St. Louis 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.