That the aftermarket cables don't last as long as the Apple cables just simply isn't always true.
With the Thunder cable (old style) I have bought tons of aftermarket ones and most have outlasted the Apple cables. I paid $3-5 per cable. I did get a dud once or twice and sometimes they do wear out. But at that price who cares. Part of why I started ordering aftermarket cables was to get the longer 6 foot cables. We are an iDevice crazy family and have plugs all over the house and cars. I tend to order 10 cables at a time every couple of years.
With the lightning cables I have ordered aftermarket ones from 2 different vendors on
Amazon here recently. So far I've been very happy.