The Marketplace Trap: Sales Growth, Platform Dependence, and Strategic Control among Indonesian SMEs
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Digital marketplaces can raise sales and market reach for Indonesian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) while making those gains more dependent on infrastructure the firm does not control. This article develops the concept of dependent growth as a dynamic mechanism rather than a label for platform dependence. Dependent growth occurs when marketplace-enabled expansion increases the value of platform-controlled resources faster than the SME develops workable alternatives to them. The study uses qualitative documentary analysis. Indonesian SME evidence from BPS and an OJK working paper is read together with current seller-facing documents from Tokopedia/TikTok Shop, Shopee, and Lazada, then interpreted against peer-reviewed journal articles. Three recurring dimensions of strategic control are examined: continuity of customer access, dependence on platform-mediated visibility, and seller discretion under platform rules. The evidence does not show that marketplace use necessarily reduces SME performance. It shows why successful participation can make later platform changes more consequential to the firm. Strategic control is therefore better understood as the ability to keep commercially usable alternatives open while continuing to benefit from marketplace scale.
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