Trader Joe’s just might be a surer sign of gentrification than Whole Foods, according to nationwide retail data supplied by research company AggData. The median income of households in counties with Trader Joe’s is $62,600–just barely beating that of counties with Whole Foods, but far higher than the 2013 U.S. median income of $52,250.
TIME ranked 3,027 chains by comparing the median income of the counties where stores are located. See the 25 richest national chains, among brands operating in at least 20 states, below. The wealthiest by this measure? Hanna Andersson, a children’s clothing store, headquartered in Portland, Ore., that focuses on organic fabrics and can be found in counties averaging household salaries of $70,262.
Below, you can see the wealthiest stores by industry. Scroll to the bottom of the page and use the search box to compare any chain.
25 Richest Stores Across All Industries
Electric cars, yoga pants and stationery stores all cater to wealthy Americans, with businesses concentrated in upscale suburban shopping malls in major metropolitan areas. Mexican fast food restaurant Baja Fresh appears to buck the trend, but serves a similar clientele in areas like northern Virginia, home of Loudoun County with the highest median income in America at $122,000.
10 Richest Car Brands
The median household income of counties with a Tesla dealer is a lofty $67,145. Compare that to Chrysler, located in counties with a median income of $49,079. The median income of all counties with a car dealer is $52,900. Use the search box at the bottom of the page to compare any car dealer.
10 Richest Retail Brands
Upscale clothing, stationery and shoe stores cater to shoppers with median incomes in the top 40% of homes. Counties with any retailers provided by Aggdata averaged incomes at $56,000.
10 Richest Restaurants
The Cheesecake Factory, California Pizza Kitchen and Godiva tend to plant themselves in upscale malls, not far from suburban staples like On the Border and Smashburger. Absent from the list are chains like Legal Seafoods that have yet to spread beyond 20 states. Use the search box below to compare any restaurants.
10 Richest Grocery Stores
Trader Joe’s barely beats Whole Foods as the grocery store serving the wealthiest customers. Counties with any grocery store average median incomes of $54,000, but stores like Piggly Wiggly concentrate in counties with median incomes around $40,000–the bottom 44% of Americans.
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Correction: Lists updated on August 25 to reflect additional store locations.
Methodology
Household median income, from the 2013 American Community Survey, is averaged across all counties for every retail location available from AggData to find the “median shopper income.” Estimates for shopper’s income would likely show greater disparity if calculated by geographies smaller than counties, which include a broader spectrum of household incomes.
Only brands with stores in 20 or more U.S. states are considered national chains and used in the lists above. Though all brands are available in the search feature regardless of the number of states they operate in.
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