Ah yes, the Sam Vimes "Boots" Theory of Economic Unfairness:

The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. Take boots, for example. ... A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that'd still be keeping his feet dry in ten years' time, while a poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.

I used to work at a more chain sporting goods store. This one dude would come in every couple weeks to buy the same shitty work boots, he would always talk about how much he loved them. Couldn't help but think how much money he would've saved by just buying a good pair that would last him years. Being poor is expensive..

I'll add that using a shoe horn has tripled the life of my shoes.