historically all wires tended to be mostly profit to help compensate for the fact that there was little profit in selling electronicsA long time equipment designer told me this, right before they said, "if I knew what I know now, I would have gotten into the cable market early on."
I have had multiple cables costing in the range of $1-3K per pair in my system. Now, all my cables are DIY, except my Totaldac USB cable, and my system has never sounded better.
I have taken apart cables in the $500-$1.5K range and, in one case, an expensive power cord consisted of THHN electrical wire from any hardware store encased in PVC tubing, also from any hardware store. This PC sold in the range of about $500 - $1K, depending on length. I kid you not, the materials cost was probably $25. This is one reason I am very skeptical of any cable manufacturer (or audio gear manufacturer) that never gives buyers a glimpse into how the cable (or gear) is made. I wouldn't buy a car without doing my research to know what the major components consisted of, and how it was made, so why in the world would I buy a cable costing as much as a car without knowing if it was constructed out of $25 of hardware wire? The hype and liberal use of "science" in cable advertising can be laughable, for those with a scientific background. It preys on buyer's fear that their system will not be optimally impedance-matched, will have audible skin effect, will pick up RFI/EMI noise, etc., etc. It is similar to other products where manufacturers come out with some new "scientific breakthrough" every year simply to generate a buying frenzy of people who feel like they are missing out if they don't have the "latest technology."
Some cables I have taken apart have quite good materials and construction quality, and obviously required a specialized machine to manufacture. Buying (or renting time with) these machines, and setting them up, is not inexpensive so only the larger companies who are confident they will sell lots of cable are able to do so. Some of those companies probably also spend quite a bit to research different cable designs. So, it is understandable that the markup reflects research and manufacturing. Larger companies, who believe they need to carry a full complement of cable types and price ranges to cover a large buyer range, probably also have a strategy so that the better sellers "carry" the unprofitable cables in their lines. In the end, the price is set at what the market will bear and only a buyer can judge the value. I am sure that while some companies have made large profits, others have lost money on cables and, in some cases, their losses were more related to poor marketing, misplacing themselves in the market, poor pricing strategies (too much or too little), and other reasons, than to how the cables sounded.
In response to the OP, sure, there are differences in how cables sound, and certainly differences in how certain cables sound with certain gear. Just because a cable sounds good in one system doesn't mean it will provide an optimal sound in another. I spend the bulk of my audio budget on the gear/speakers but others place a higher importance on cables. Not all of those people have been doing this for a long time, or have the ability and experience to construct their own cables. Maybe they will in the future, maybe they find certain manufactured cables to sound best in their systems, maybe they have better sounding systems, or maybe they simply have a better way to spend their time. Good for them. IMO, if someone has the scratch, why not buy whatever cable sounds best to them. There is no right or wrong, so there doesn't need to be a consensus.