Sure, but all of these aren’t zero sum. First, even low end skates are extremely stiff. I keep my son in middle tier price point and he still skips the top eyelet. Ditch the waxed laces if waxed laces are causing an issue. All the rest of the things you mentioned are valid but not lacing so tight or skipping is something that can be experimented with at zero cost. Even in big cities, trying to find someone who knows about shimming is a needle in a haystack search.