I agree with you saying that the 345 is not popular with the accountants, but it was the accountants that pushed the airlines to go for 345/346 instead of the 777 as it was much cheaper and Airbus mirrored some amazing fuel burns etc...
Sorry folks, I humbly think you're wrong. When built, the 345 was the only airplane capable of flying around 18 hours non-stop, which opened many new options. The 777-200LR was still a couple of years away.
What changed everything were the new GE engines on the 777.
Yes, the 345's a lovely airplane to look at. Not as gorgeous to fly as the 343 though.