One company raises prices on a item due to another company raising prices on an item, etc.

It's the expansion of the money supply that causes inflation. More money in the system chasing the same amount of goods and services decreases the value of the money, making the price of those goods and services appear to be more. In reality, the money is worth less. The actual 'cost' of the goods and services, in terms of the the resources etc needed to create them, hasn't really changed. If anything, it's more likely to drop as people find more efficient ways of doing things. Usually, every dollar you get is worth less when you spend it than when you got it.