Clothing and laundry · Metro area · West Virginia
Clothing and shoe stores in the Charleston, WV metro area
How the Charleston, WV metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #259 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia
- Listings
- 111
- 59 chain locations (53%)
- Official establishments
- 51
- −26.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $147.8M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,692 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.3M
- 5% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.7
- 22% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 200,170
- −4.7% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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
Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in the Charleston metro area comes to about $147.8M a year: $1,692 per household, 18% 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 Charleston metro area has 111 clothing and shoe stores on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 59 are chain locations, or 53%, against 44% across the U.S. That is 12.7 per 10,000 households, 22% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.
Official counts show 51 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Charleston metro area in 2023, down 26.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,713 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Another 88 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 Charleston metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Charleston metro area declined 4.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For clothing and shoe stores, the Charleston metro area has a Groundwork market score of 41 (lower middle): #259 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia.
How the Charleston metro area compares
The same measures for West Virginia 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 | Charleston metro area | West Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.7 | 10.8 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.3M | $1.6M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,713 | 2,064 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −26.1% | −13.3% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −4.7% | −1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,692 | $1,698 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $60,117 | $59,608 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 41 | 55 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 51−26.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 621
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $11.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 88Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 11159 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 116The 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 Charleston 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 Charleston metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 200,170−4.7% since 2020
- Households
- 87,358
- Median age
- 43.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 1,746 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 118
- Median household income
- $60,117
- Average household income
- $81,990
- Median home value
- $141,100
- Jobs located here
- 110,278
- Daytime population
- 231,110Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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 West Virginia
Every West Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in West Virginia for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in West Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Charleston metro area marked.
Top metro areas in West Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 74 | 3,301 | 13.9 | $1.8M | +3.3% | #41 of 387 |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | 68 | 146 | 12.4 | $1.5M | +7.1% | #72 of 387 |
| Winchester, VA-WV | 63 | 79 | 14.2 | $1.4M | +6.5% | #110 of 387 |
| 1Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH | 61 | 41 | 8.3 | $2M | −3.6% | #121 of 387 |
| 2Wheeling, WV-OH | 52 | 63 | 10.9 | $1.6M | −3.6% | #190 of 387 |
| 3Morgantown, WV | 47 | 77 | 13.4 | $1.4M | +1.3% | #219 of 387 |
| 4Charleston, WV | 41 | 111 | 12.7 | $1.3M | −4.7% | #259 of 387 |
| 5Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 34 | 216 | 14.2 | $1.2M | −2.6% | #295 of 387 |
| 6Beckley, WV | 33 | 55 | 12.2 | $1.3M | −4.3% | #301 of 387 |
| 7Parkersburg-Vienna, WV | 11 | 76 | 20.1 | $831K | −2.3% | #380 of 387 |
Other business types in the Charleston 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 laundry45
- Clothing and shoe stores41
- Laundromats
- Dry cleaners49
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Charleston, WV metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 111 clothing and shoe stores in the Charleston metro area. 59 of them (53%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 51 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 26.1% from 2019. Official counts list 88 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Charleston, WV metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $147.8M a year, or $1,692 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 111 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 87,358 households in the Charleston metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Charleston, WV metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Charleston metro area has 12.7 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 22% 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 Charleston metro area would have about 116, against 111 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,713 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 26.1% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Charleston, WV metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Charleston metro area at 200,170 people in 2025, down 4.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 87,358 households. Median household income in the Charleston metro area is $60,117, 26% 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 Charleston metro area scores 41 for clothing and shoe stores (lower middle), #259 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 Charleston 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 Charleston metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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.