Yes, I think this is the key point of the whole discussion. And thank you for this thought. The value is not only in the quality of the item, but also in preserving the choice already made by a person. You find something that fits you once and you don't spend your time and energy searching for a replacement anymore. No "we discontinued the item", "we changed the material", as people write here about Levi's jeans.
I want to test this idea with a T-shirt.