Every time I switch the WP Theme on my main StoreLocatorPlus.com site I curse the fact that the "LITTLE" theme-specific elements like menus and widget areas are toast. I need to recreate all of my menus and widget placement which takes a good bit of time to get things back to usable for my site visitors and customers.

This happens via a core feature of Woothemes Theme Framework including Storefront (among many others) that is listed in the WP Theme directory. This certainly qualifies as built-in custom theme functionality IMO, which is in the same "boat" as the other issues at hand. As of last week Woothemes = Automattic , do they nix their own non-abiding listings?

I completely GET where the WP Theme Review standards are coming from. The ability to switch to a new WP theme without worrying "OK, what am I going to lose this time?" makes WordPress a better solution for many. It would only take one time for some clients to build a WP site using Theme A and switching to Theme B to find 20% of their content/setup GONE before they would very likely issue a "we are DONE with WordPress" mandate on the project.

That said, not being able to build in turn key functionality for complex solutions addressing specific verticals takes away HUGE POTENTIAL of what a WordPress Theme can be. Maybe the WordPress Theme framework/standards needs to think about a more tightly integrated option for themes to include a "works best with" feature for plugins that extend the theme and make it a "one click package install" that is readily presented to anyone installing a theme.

I also think it is time for WordPress to fully embrace the premium market. Many great developers cannot afford to give away all of their work for free. The plugin and theme market would be a viable career opportunity for many if only WordPress would engage the premium WP products community.