I really like what Echo said about the various definitions of runway: "For some it's about how they feel, for others it is about taking care in the details of a look, and for others it is a literal interpretation."
There are many times when I dress for 'functional' and 'looks vaguely nice' which means I'm working within my intuitive comfort zone of harmonious colors and shapes for myself and my intended audience. The thing is, these are goals that can be achieved many different ways, and (luckily) don't usually require a huge amount of brain engagement or energy which often is needed elsewhere. I'm grateful that this an option and a default.
Then there are times I have the bandwidth of time and energy, if not necessarily a higher budget, to try harder. When I see visual expression as an art form and a place for play and experimentation and learning. Where regardless of my own tastes (which change, and grow, and adapt), the looks that puzzle or awe, or make me smile, or challenge me, all have something I can learn from if I give it a chance and train my eye to appreciate the context. When I try new things sometimes I fail, sometimes I look ridiculous, and then I laugh, and it's no big deal.
I don't think economic reality or the wealth divide can or should be glossed over. The power of corporations and the influence of branding as advertising is worth acknowledging and considering, especially as one 'signs on' to the brand by displaying it prominently. But we declare allegiances all the time with our clothes, whether they have logos or not.
In all of the arts you need patrons to economically support the ability of artists and designers to create. Only a tiny percentage of people might be able to or want to own a runway look, but they help make it possible for many thousands of people to see it. To consume it with their eyes, to reinterpret it, to knock it off, to wear a color or shape from it, to simply enjoy the visual feast. To challenge it and subvert it (I love Adbusters 'culturejamming' spoof beauty and fashion ads, for example. I think exposing injustices pushes an industry forward). A literal interpretation is only a very small subset of this effect.