My point was that long delays are actually quite rare. I travel a lot and can't remember my last one. Some would argue that delays are fewer than they were 20 years ago. This would especially be the case if you were used to flying charter carriers.
The items sold at the airport, again, aren't tat but can be quite high end. I've made some decent savings in the past when compared to the high street.
My partner hates using LPL because he thinks the terminal is "boring". And feedback from pax at a carrier I used to work at consistently cited lack of retail as a drawback of us using MAN T3.
You forget that despite the added "stress" (I never get the stress but I concede some do) the holiday starts at the airport and the retail offering is part and parcel of that. If you travel regularly and you see the airport as little more than a train station then that is understandable but it doesn't mean the retail offering is wrong.
We all know how airports rely more on non-aeronautical revenue than they ever did so I won't labour the point. Suffice to say it helps, in part, to keep us travelling cheaper than we used to. We can all look back at the old days, often with rose tinted glasses, (even I do) but we have to accept that they aren't coming back. Quiet terminals, less stressful security, complimentary newspapers, free IFE, complimentary hot meals on the shortest of flights were all great but we paid through the nose for pleasure.