Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · County · North Carolina

Clothing and shoe stores in Orange County, NC

How Orange County, NC 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 84 out of 100: High

Ranked #92 of 2,087 scored counties
#4 of 85 scored counties in North Carolina

Listings
45
13 chain locations (29%)
Official establishments
21
−30.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$126.3M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $2,203 a household
Spending per listing
$2.8M
2.2 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
7.8
52% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
152,498
+6.1% since 2020

See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in Orange 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 Orange County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores in Orange County is 84 (high), #92 of 2,087 scored counties and #4 of 85 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for clothing and shoe stores.

As of September 2026, map listings count 45 clothing and shoe stores in Orange County. Of those, 13 are chain locations, or 29%, against 44% across the U.S. That is 7.8 per 10,000 households, 52% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.

Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in Orange County comes to about $126.3M a year: $2,203 per household, 7% above the U.S. average. That is about $2.8M of household spending for each store on map listings, 2.2 times the U.S. figure of $1.3M. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which clothing and shoe stores share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in Orange County was 21 in 2023, down 30.0% from 2019. That is one for every 2,731 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $1.1M have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in Orange County. Population estimates put the population change in Orange County from 2020 to 2025 at +6.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Orange County 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.

Clothing and shoe stores in Orange County, NC compared with North Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureOrange CountyNorth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.815.416.2
Spending per listing$2.8M$1.2M$1.3M
Households per official establishment2,7311,2971,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−30.0%−8.1%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+6.1%+7.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$2,203$1,894$2,055
Median household income$90,089$72,388$80,734
Groundwork market score8447

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
30 → 21−30.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
215
Annual payroll, 2023
$3.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
63Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
4513 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
99The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$1.1M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in Orange 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 Orange County

Population, 2025 estimate
152,498+6.1% since 2020
Households
57,342
Median age
39.0
Homes lived in by their owners
64%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
398 sq. mi.
People per square mile
376
Median household income
$90,089+25.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$136,307
Median home value
$459,500
Jobs located here
75,014
Daytime population
159,446Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Clothing and shoe stores across North Carolina

Every North Carolina market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with Orange County marked.

Top counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Chatham County, NC94206.1$3.7M+11.0%#8 of 2,087
2Franklin County, NC84155.3$3.5M+18.8%#84 of 2,087
3Harnett County, NC84316.2$2.9M+12.3%#89 of 2,087
4Orange County, NC84457.8$2.8M+6.1%#92 of 2,087
5Union County, NC84779.1$2.5M+11.7%#95 of 2,087
6Lincoln County, NC84328.7$2.3M+13.2%#98 of 2,087
7Hoke County, NC8094.7$3.7M+9.0%#152 of 2,087
8Granville County, NC76177.6$2.4M+2.1%#215 of 2,087
9Pender County, NC76249.5$2M+19.0%#221 of 2,087
10Davie County, NC761911.0$1.7M+6.9%#224 of 2,087

Other business types in Orange County

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

Questions

How many clothing and shoe stores are in Orange County, NC?

Orange County has 45 clothing and shoe stores on map listings as of September 2026. 13 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 21 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 30.0% from 2019. Another 63 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Orange County, NC spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $126.3M a year, or $2,203 per household. That is 7% above the U.S. average (an index of 107, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 45 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $2.8M per store. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores. It is estimated from the incomes of the 57,342 households in Orange County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Orange County, NC compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?

Orange County has 7.8 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 52% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $2.8M, 2.2 times the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, Orange County would have about 99, against 45 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,731 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 30.0% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.

How fast is Orange County, NC growing?

Population estimates put Orange County at 152,498 people in 2025, up 6.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 57,342 households. The median household income in Orange County is $90,089 a year, 12% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.6% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Orange County scores 84 for clothing and shoe stores (high), #92 of 2,087 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Orange 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 Orange County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Orange 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 Orange 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.