I haven't had any trouble with the stock rim tape that comes with my bikes, either. (Granted, I've only purchased two bikes since 2004, first a $75 used hard-tail MTB, and my current bike, an LHT that I bought new in 2008. At the current rate of decay, I'll still be riding the LHT when I'm 80.)
When I bought the new bike, the first thing I changed was the saddle. Then I worked on fenders, a rack and pedals.