So looking at Rockauto I see that there are a couple of companies I've never heard of before and they are 30% to 50% lower in price than Monroe and in some cases Moog, Gabriel and KYB. Depends on which car you are fixing.
The lower price parts state they meet OEM specs and they probably do for the first month. If friends and relatives went for the lowest prices they got what they paid for. In any repair situation you balance price and quality. That should be apparent to any conscious adult over the age of 30.

R.
Or maybe they were from Moorhead in which case it figures.....