There is the old adage, “You get what you pay for.”
In the long run, my carefully crafted widgets could turn out less expensive than the cheap poor quality widgets, when repair/replace costs are factored in.
Once upon a time, I was employed making widgets. They had to be made to very exacting standards. I have no idea what they were for. That job did not last long.
A free market will generally find the best product at the best price for the customer. It’s not always be pretty, but I prefer free market capitalism.
The tank maker for the Soviet Red Army designed and built for a useful operational life of 6 weeks, and built 3 times as many units. The supplier for the Wehrmacht built tanks to last 9 months; but, couldn’t keep up with battle attrition. How did that work out?