Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · Small-town market · West Virginia

Clothing and shoe stores in the Fairmont, WV area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for clothing and shoe stores in the Fairmont, WV area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 72 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #77 of 536 scored small-town markets
#1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia

Listings
14
5 chain locations (36%)
Official establishments
3
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$40.4M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,730 a household
Spending per listing
$2.9M
2.3 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.0
63% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
55,584
−1.2% since 2020

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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 14 clothing and shoe stores in the Fairmont area. 5 of them (36%) are chain locations, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 6.0, 63% below the U.S. rate of 16.2.

Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in the Fairmont area comes to about $40.4M a year: $1,730 per household, 16% below the U.S. average. That is about $2.9M of household spending for each store on map listings, 2.3 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.

In 2023, official counts showed 3 businesses with payroll in the Fairmont area classed as clothing and shoe stores. That is one for every 7,780 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Another 15 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

Population estimates show the Fairmont area declined 1.2% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores in the Fairmont area is 72 (upper middle), #77 of 536 scored small-town markets and #1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.

How the Fairmont 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.

Clothing and shoe stores in Fairmont, WV area compared with West Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureFairmont areaWest VirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.010.816.2
Spending per listing$2.9M$1.6M$1.3M
Households per official establishment7,7802,0641,273
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−13.3%−12.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.2%−1.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,730$1,698$2,055
Median household income$67,370$59,608$80,734
Groundwork market score7255

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3
Employees, 2023
33
Annual payroll, 2023
$414K
One-person businesses, 2023
15Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
145 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
32The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

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

Population, 2025 estimate
55,584−1.2% since 2020
Households
23,339
Median age
41.1
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
309 sq. mi.
People per square mile
181
Median household income
$67,370+33.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$82,263
Median home value
$166,700
Jobs located here
18,773
Daytime population
50,587Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Fairmont area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Fairmont 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 West Virginia

Every West Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets 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 Fairmont area marked.

Top small-town markets in West Virginia

Small-town markets in West Virginia ranked for clothing and shoe stores by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Fairmont, WV72146.0$2.9M−1.2%#77 of 536
Cumberland, MD-WV464712.2$1.4M−1.3%#304 of 536
2Clarksburg, WV335816.3$1.1M−2.4%#415 of 536
3Elkins, WV291615.0$1.1M−3.6%#447 of 536
4Bluefield, WV-VA276014.8$1.1M−3.8%#461 of 536

Other business types in the Fairmont 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 Fairmont, WV area?

There are 14 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in the Fairmont area as of September 2026. 5 of them (36%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023. Official counts list 15 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Fairmont, WV area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $40.4M a year, or $1,730 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 14 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $2.9M 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 23,339 households in the Fairmont area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Fairmont, WV area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?

The Fairmont area has 6.0 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 63% below the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $2.9M, 2.3 times the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Fairmont area would have about 32, against 14 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 7,780 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S.

How fast is the Fairmont, WV area growing?

Population estimates put the Fairmont area at 55,584 people in 2025, down 1.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,339 households. The median household income in the Fairmont area is $67,370 a year, 17% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.9% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Fairmont area scores 72 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #77 of 536 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Fairmont 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 Fairmont area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fairmont 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 Fairmont 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.