Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · Metro area · Ohio

Clothing and shoe stores in the Cleveland, OH metro area

The clothing and shoe stores in the Cleveland, OH metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 58 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #146 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 12 scored metro areas based in Ohio

Listings
1,226
607 chain locations (50%)
Official establishments
588
−13.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.8B
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,972 a household
Spending per listing
$1.5M
18% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
13.2
19% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
2,165,775
−0.8% since 2020

See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Cleveland 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 Cleveland metro area. 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

At $1,972 per household (4% below the U.S. average), households in the Cleveland metro area spend about $1.8B a year on clothing, shoes and related services. Spread across 1,226 clothing and shoe stores, that is $1.5M per store, 18% 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 Cleveland metro area has 1,226 clothing and shoe stores on map listings as of September 2026. 607 of them (50%) are chain locations, against 44% across the U.S. That comes to 13.2 for every 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.

In 2023, official counts showed 588 businesses with payroll in the Cleveland metro area classed as clothing and shoe stores, down 13.5% from 2019. That is one for every 1,584 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Another 1,414 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 14 SBA-backed loans worth $1.2M have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Cleveland metro area.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Cleveland metro area declined 0.8%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores in the Cleveland metro area is 58 (upper middle), #146 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 12 scored metro areas based in Ohio.

How the Cleveland metro area compares

The same measures for Ohio 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 Cleveland, OH metro area compared with Ohio and the U.S.
MeasureCleveland metro areaOhioU.S.
Listings per 10k households13.212.916.2
Spending per listing$1.5M$1.5M$1.3M
Households per official establishment1,5841,6771,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−13.5%−13.4%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.8%+0.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,972$1,954$2,055
Median household income$70,678$71,389$80,734
Groundwork market score5861

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
588−13.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
7,752
Annual payroll, 2023
$150.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
1,414Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
1,226607 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
1,445The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
14
Amount
$1.2M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Cleveland 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 Cleveland metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
2,165,775−0.8% since 2020
Households
931,377
Median age
42.3
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
2,702 sq. mi.
People per square mile
804
Median household income
$70,678
Average household income
$98,881
Median home value
$215,400
Jobs located here
1,071,853
Daytime population
2,231,827Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Cleveland 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 Cleveland metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Clothing and shoe stores across Ohio

Every Ohio market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Ohio for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Ohio (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Cleveland metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Ohio

Metro areas in Ohio ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Columbus, OH761,15013.3$1.6M+4.7%#32 of 387
2Springfield, OH68498.8$2M−0.4%#69 of 387
3Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH6642912.5$1.6M+1.5%#85 of 387
4Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN651,30114.3$1.4M+2.7%#94 of 387
Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH61418.3$2M−3.6%#121 of 387
5Cleveland, OH581,22613.2$1.5M−0.8%#146 of 387
6Canton-Massillon, OH5720312.1$1.5M−0.2%#155 of 387
7Akron, OH5640813.8$1.4M0.0%#165 of 387
Wheeling, WV-OH526310.9$1.6M−3.6%#190 of 387
8Toledo, OH4934513.6$1.4M−1.0%#210 of 387

Other business types in the Cleveland metro area

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

Questions

How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Cleveland, OH metro area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,226 clothing and shoe stores in the Cleveland metro area. 607 of them (50%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 588 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 13.5% from 2019. Official counts list 1,414 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Cleveland, OH metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $1.8B a year, or $1,972 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,226 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 931,377 households in the Cleveland metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Cleveland, OH metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?

The Cleveland metro area has 13.2 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.5M, 18% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Cleveland metro area would have about 1,445, against 1,226 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,584 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 13.5% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.

How fast is the Cleveland, OH metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Cleveland metro area at 2,165,775 people in 2025, down 0.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 931,377 households. Median household income in the Cleveland metro area is $70,678, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734.

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 Cleveland metro area scores 58 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #146 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 Cleveland 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 Cleveland metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Cleveland 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 Cleveland 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.