Yes, I went to order a second power cord to find out that the price was now double for the same cord!!!? There went the "loom" idea for that cable company.
There's a lot of this going on, but it's not everywhere. There is actually expensive gear out there that's worth it. It depends on who makes it and the channels that it goes through.
For example, there are some passionate audiophile engineers out there building their own brilliant stuff one piece at a time. Most of these folks are just getting by or doing okay, but they love what they do. They are not raking it in, even though they're delivering hi-end goods at hi-end prices. For instance, having just one quality chassis built, because you only have one amp to build right now, can be a major cost factor that leads to escalated pricing.
Of course, this does not explain why the big companies with much higher production and reduced costs, charge so much or as much.
Maybe, the big company's product got an "A" rating in that mainstream publication. Of course, advertising in that publication can cost them a bunch, right?