Clothing and laundry · Metro area · North Carolina
Clothing and shoe stores in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for clothing and shoe stores in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 53 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #187 of 387 scored metro areas
#6 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 192
- 79 chain locations (41%)
- Official establishments
- 83
- −19.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $255.7M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,710 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.3M
- 5% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.8
- 21% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 376,890
- +3.2% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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
Households in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area spend about $255.7M a year on clothing, shoes and related services, or $1,710 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.3M of household spending for each store on map listings, 5% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores.
The Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area has 192 clothing and shoe stores on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 41% of them, against 44% across the U.S. That is 12.8 per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.
In 2023, official counts showed 83 businesses with payroll in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area classed as clothing and shoe stores, down 19.2% from 2019. That is one for every 1,802 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Another 193 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $15K has gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area grew 3.2%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area scores 53 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores, ranking #187 of 387 scored metro areas and #6 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina.
How the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro 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 | Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.8 | 15.4 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.3M | $1.2M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,802 | 1,297 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −19.2% | −8.1% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.2% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,710 | $1,894 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $62,787 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 53 | 47 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 83−19.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,005
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $17.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 193Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 19279 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 201The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $15K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 376,890+3.2% since 2020
- Households
- 149,578
- Median age
- 43.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 1,640 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 225
- Median household income
- $62,787+30.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $83,592
- Median home value
- $215,600
- Jobs located here
- 158,748
- Daytime population
- 362,333Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in North Carolina for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in North Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 80 | 295 | 11.9 | $1.8M | +7.5% | #22 of 387 |
| 2Raleigh-Cary, NC | 73 | 885 | 15.4 | $1.4M | +12.6% | #48 of 387 |
| 3Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 59 | 1,734 | 16.1 | $1.3M | +10.1% | #142 of 387 |
| 4Winston-Salem, NC | 56 | 377 | 13.4 | $1.3M | +5.3% | #167 of 387 |
| 5Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC | 54 | 71 | 16.1 | $1.2M | +10.3% | #183 of 387 |
| 6Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC | 53 | 192 | 12.8 | $1.3M | +3.2% | #187 of 387 |
| 7Jacksonville, NC | 52 | 104 | 13.8 | $1.3M | +6.0% | #195 of 387 |
| Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 45 | 1,102 | 15.6 | $1.3M | +0.9% | #233 of 387 |
| 8Wilmington, NC | 44 | 364 | 18.3 | $1M | +15.9% | #238 of 387 |
| 9Greensboro-High Point, NC | 43 | 507 | 16.0 | $1.1M | +4.1% | #246 of 387 |
Other business types in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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 laundry48
- Clothing and shoe stores53
- Laundromats32
- Dry cleaners51
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 192 clothing and shoe stores in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area. 79 of them (41%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 83 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 19.2% from 2019. Official counts list 193 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $255.7M a year, or $1,710 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 192 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.3M 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 149,578 households in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area has 12.8 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.3M, 5% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area would have about 201, against 192 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,802 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 19.2% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area at 376,890 people in 2025, up 3.2% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 149,578 households. Median household income in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area is $62,787, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.5%, 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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area scores 53 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #187 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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton 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.