I initially thought that an "average american" may have included parents buying shoes for children, in which case 7 would seem less unreasonable, but the link s

I initially thought that an "average american" may have included parents buying shoes for children, in which case 7 would seem less unreasonable, but the link says that children are included in the average. Growing feet, play, sports, and back-to-school means that parents are buying shoes for kids every couple of months. 7.4 pairs of shoes per year seems absurd, but it may be a case of a less fortunate person not being able to afford the initial high cost of longer-lasting footwear (aka: The Boots Theory of Socioeconomic Unfairness) https://www.thebillfold.com/2015/03/to-terry-pratchett-who-gave-us-sam-vimes-boots-theory-of-socioeconomic-unfairness/ https://www.thebillfold.com/2015/03/to-terry-pratchett-who-g... Even though it comes from a fiction fantasy novel, I think there may be some truth to it. I have two pairs each (brown and black) of oxford shoes and Red Wing boots for work. I was able to afford really high quality shoes and have had the oxfords resoled three times in 11 years, with the boots being durable enough that they haven't yet needed new soles after five. I also have the time to spend a leisurely Sunday evening polishing them, to keep them in good shape. I also don't care about wearing the same four pairs of shoes, one after another in a predictable cycle, all of the time. Someone who can't afford USA-made leather boots and Italian-made Oxford dress shoes, and also lacks the time to care for them, may be stuck in a cycle where their cheaper footwear wears out quickly. Even for sneakers, I pay a premium for USA-made New Balance sneakers, and they last an entire year after which I relegate them to lawn mower duty and replace them. They are old man shoes though, so their aesthetic may not be for everyone. If I ran, I would have to replace them more often-- my wife runs and she replaces her running shoes multiple times per year. Then again, I don't have a job in the service industry where I'm standing the entire time and walking 10 miles every day so I may have unreasonable expectations about how long shoes should last. So it could be socioeconomic unfairness, or it may be rampant consumerism, or it may be a combination of the two....