Clothing and laundry · Small-town market · North Carolina
Clothing and shoe stores in the Albemarle, NC area
How the Albemarle, NC 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 64 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #150 of 536 scored small-town markets
#6 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 29
- 9 chain locations (31%)
- Official establishments
- 12
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $43M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,704 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.5M
- 17% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.5
- 29% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 68,830
- +9.8% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Albemarle 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 Albemarle 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
Households in the Albemarle area spend about $43M a year on clothing, shoes and related services, or $1,704 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.5M of household spending for each store on map listings, 17% above 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 29 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in the Albemarle area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 31% of them, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 11.5, 29% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.
In 2023, official counts showed 12 businesses with payroll in the Albemarle area classed as clothing and shoe stores. That is one for every 2,103 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Official counts list 36 one-person businesses without payroll.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Albemarle area grew 9.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Albemarle area scores 64 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores, ranking #150 of 536 scored small-town markets and #6 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina.
How the Albemarle area compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Albemarle area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.5 | 15.4 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.5M | $1.2M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,103 | 1,297 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −8.1% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +9.8% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,704 | $1,894 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $60,704 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 64 | 47 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 12
- Employees, 2023
- 121
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 36Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 299 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 34The 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 Albemarle 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 Albemarle area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 68,830+9.8% since 2020
- Households
- 25,240
- Median age
- 41.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 395 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 164
- Median household income
- $60,704+15.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,208
- Median home value
- $242,400
- Jobs located here
- 23,648
- Daytime population
- 57,304Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Albemarle 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 Albemarle 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Albemarle area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Anderson Creek, NC | 89 | 31 | 6.2 | $2.9M | +12.3% | #8 of 536 |
| 2Brevard, NC | 73 | 10 | 6.9 | $2.6M | +2.9% | #69 of 536 |
| 3Marion, NC | 68 | 16 | 8.6 | $1.9M | +1.5% | #114 of 536 |
| 4New Bern, NC | 68 | 58 | 11.1 | $1.5M | +3.6% | #116 of 536 |
| 5North Wilkesboro, NC | 65 | 19 | 7.0 | $2.2M | +0.6% | #136 of 536 |
| 6Albemarle, NC | 64 | 29 | 11.5 | $1.5M | +9.8% | #150 of 536 |
| 7Forest City, NC | 61 | 32 | 12.0 | $1.3M | +2.1% | #174 of 536 |
| 8Waynesville, NC | 59 | 32 | 11.8 | $1.4M | +1.9% | #194 of 536 |
| 9Shelby-Kings Mountain, NC | 53 | 50 | 12.9 | $1.3M | +3.4% | #245 of 536 |
| 10Wilson, NC | 49 | 43 | 13.0 | $1.3M | +1.7% | #284 of 536 |
Other business types in the Albemarle 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 laundry65
- Clothing and shoe stores64
- Laundromats
- Dry cleaners
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Albemarle, NC area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 29 clothing and shoe stores in the Albemarle area. 9 of them (31%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 12 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023. Official counts also show 36 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Albemarle, NC area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $43M a year, or $1,704 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 29 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.5M 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 25,240 households in the Albemarle area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Albemarle, NC area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Albemarle area has 11.5 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 29% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.5M, 17% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Albemarle area would have about 34, against 29 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,103 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S.
How fast is the Albemarle, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the Albemarle area at 68,830 people in 2025, up 9.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 25,240 households. Median household income in the Albemarle area is $60,704, 25% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 15.4%, 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 Albemarle area scores 64 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #150 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 Albemarle 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 Albemarle area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Albemarle 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 Albemarle 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.