Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · County · Tennessee

Clothing and shoe stores in Knox County, TN

How Knox County, TN 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 44 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,275 of 2,087 scored counties
#46 of 72 scored counties in Tennessee

Listings
372
187 chain locations (50%)
Official establishments
206
−1.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$385M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,914 a household
Spending per listing
$1M
19% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
18.5
14% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
511,453
+6.5% since 2020

See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in Knox 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 Knox 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 372 clothing and shoe stores in Knox County. Chain locations make up 50% of them, against 44% across the U.S. That comes to 18.5 for every 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 16.2.

At $1,914 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in Knox County spend about $385M a year on clothing, shoes and related services. That works out to $1M per store, 19% below 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.

Official counts show 206 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in Knox County in 2023, down 1.4% from 2019. That is one for every 976 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Official counts also show 306 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $510K have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in Knox County.

Population estimates put the population change in Knox County from 2020 to 2025 at +6.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Knox County scores 44 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores, ranking #1,275 of 2,087 scored counties and #46 of 72 scored counties in Tennessee.

How Knox County compares

The same measures for Tennessee 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 Knox County, TN compared with Tennessee and the U.S.
MeasureKnox CountyTennesseeU.S.
Listings per 10k households18.517.016.2
Spending per listing$1M$1.1M$1.3M
Households per official establishment9761,2411,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−1.4%−7.6%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+6.5%+5.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,914$1,842$2,055
Median household income$74,222$69,595$80,734
Groundwork market score4438

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
209 → 206−1.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
2,687
Annual payroll, 2023
$48.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
306Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
372187 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
303The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$510K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
511,453+6.5% since 2020
Households
201,146
Median age
38.9
Homes lived in by their owners
65%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
508 sq. mi.
People per square mile
972
Median household income
$74,222+29.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$104,460
Median home value
$320,900
Jobs located here
270,203
Daytime population
541,810Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Knox 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 Knox 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 Tennessee

Every Tennessee market ranked →

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

Top counties in Tennessee

Counties in Tennessee ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Loudon County, TN88177.1$2.8M+15.6%#45 of 2,087
2Fayette County, TN84116.4$3.1M+7.7%#86 of 2,087
3Robertson County, TN81269.2$2.1M+9.9%#147 of 2,087
4Cheatham County, TN77138.0$2.4M+4.1%#198 of 2,087
5Anderson County, TN76237.0$2.6M+6.1%#213 of 2,087
6Roane County, TN76187.9$2.3M+7.0%#219 of 2,087
7Jefferson County, TN75146.4$2.7M+9.3%#235 of 2,087
8Blount County, TN75488.6$2.2M+6.0%#240 of 2,087
9Sumner County, TN748410.7$1.9M+9.2%#269 of 2,087
10Marion County, TN7365.1$3.3M+3.2%#275 of 2,087
46Knox County, TN4437218.5$1M+6.5%#1,275 of 2,087

Other business types in Knox County

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

Clothing and laundry

Funeral services

Questions

How many clothing and shoe stores are in Knox County, TN?

There are 372 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in Knox County as of September 2026. 187 of them (50%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 206 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 1.4% from 2019. Another 306 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Knox County, TN spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $385M a year, or $1,914 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 372 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1M 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 201,146 households in Knox County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Knox County has 18.5 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1M, 19% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, Knox County would have about 303, against 372 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 976 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 1.4% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.

How fast is Knox County, TN growing?

Population estimates put Knox County at 511,453 people in 2025, up 6.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 201,146 households. The median household income in Knox County is $74,222 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 29.2% 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. Knox County scores 44 for clothing and shoe stores (lower middle), #1,275 of 2,087 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Knox County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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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.