I'm definitely not advocating for hoarding or scalping, I'm just curious about what specifically the systemic inefficiencies are that prevent sellers from undercutting the hoarders and scalpers by raising prices on their own.
rightfully or not, raising prices in these situations is considered distasteful by most people. the long-term damage to the brand is probably not worth the short-term profits. retailers would rather just run out of stuff or limit customers to two boxes of pasta to maintain their image.
