I think one part of this is that it's easier to hike prices when there's a narrative of inflation because it gets lost in the noise. In quieter times, standing out with price increases drives customers to the competition.
It's absolutely true that in an inflationary environment companies hike prices preemptively. That is the phenomenon known as inflation. Missing from similar theories is any explanation of why this happens sometimes and not others.
When the media is already talking about there being inflation, especially when they've been talking about it being anticipated for a while before it showed up, that makes it much easier for companies to raise prices and just say, "It's just like everyone's saying! It's just inflation! You can't blame us!"
That's not the same as saying "inflation means companies raising prices; it's tautological."