The price is so high, consumers begin to become reluctant to pay for the item. Retailers must lower prices to unload their excess inventory of Tickle Me Elmos, Cabbage Patch Kids, or Zhu pets. A state of perfect equilibrium for a long period of time is rare. Perhaps one example of perfect equilibrium might be found at an elementary school that sells pizza to its students. The demand is relatively constant, given that the student population remains the same from week to week, and students have relatively few other options. Students whose parents give them money for pizza have no choice but to buy food on-site, since they have cannot eat otherwise; students who 'brown bag it' are unlikely to buy lunch, even if the pizza is substantially cheaper one day. Because lunchtime is finite, few students have the time to eat more than one or two slices, so they will not buy more if price is lowered. The vendor has discovered over time what price students are willing to pay so the pizza parlor can still make a profit and can guess what the demand will be, based upon the fixed number of students and the time of year or week. Although some students may...
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