Groundwork

Pets · Small-town market · West Virginia

Pet businesses in the Fairmont, WV area

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 60 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #147 of 527 scored small-town markets
#1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia

Listings
24
3 chain locations (13%)
Official establishments
10
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$18.9M
On pets · $812 a household
Spending per listing
$789K
10% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
10.3
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
55,584
−1.2% since 2020

See the pet businesses around any address in the Fairmont area

The site report maps the pet businesses 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.

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

As of September 2026, map listings count 24 pet businesses in the Fairmont area. Chain locations make up 13% of them, against 17% across the U.S. That comes to 10.3 for every 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 10.4.

At $812 per household (11% below the U.S. average), households in the Fairmont area spend about $18.9M a year on pets. Spread across 24 pet businesses, that is $789K per business, 10% below the U.S. figure of $878K.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Fairmont area was 10 in 2023. That is one for every 2,334 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Official counts list 24 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $135K has gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Fairmont area.

Population estimates put the population change in the Fairmont area from 2020 to 2025 at −1.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for pet businesses in the Fairmont area is 60 (upper middle), #147 of 527 scored small-town markets and #1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia.

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 pets by the pet businesses counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Pet businesses in Fairmont, WV area compared with West Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureFairmont areaWest VirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households10.39.010.4
Spending per listing$789K$876K$878K
Households per official establishment2,3342,5751,852
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+10.1%+11.4%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.2%−1.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on pets$812$788$909
Median household income$67,370$59,608$80,734
Groundwork market score6050

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
10
Employees, 2023
139
Annual payroll, 2023
$5M
One-person businesses, 2023
24Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
243 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
22The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$135K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet 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 pet businesses 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.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Pet businesses across West Virginia

Every West Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in West Virginia for pet businesses, 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 pet businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Fairmont, WV602410.3$789K−1.2%#147 of 527
Cumberland, MD-WV554210.9$709K−1.3%#211 of 527
2Clarksburg, WV554111.5$697K−2.4%#213 of 527
3Bluefield, WV-VA484110.1$714K−3.8%#299 of 527
4Elkins, WV381413.1$567K−3.6%#399 of 527

Other business types in the Fairmont area

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

Questions

How many pet businesses are in the Fairmont, WV area?

The Fairmont area has 24 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (13%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023. Official counts also show 24 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Fairmont, WV area spend on pets?

About $18.9M a year, or $812 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $789K per business. 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 pet businesses?

The Fairmont area has 10.3 pet businesses per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $789K, 10% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the national ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Fairmont area would have about 22, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,334 households, against one for every 1,852 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 60 for pet businesses (upper middle), #147 of 527 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 pet businesses 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 pet businesses · 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.