Against the backdrop of the rapid evolution of the digital economy and intensifying platform competition, how latecomer platform firms achieve sustained growth under resource constraints has become a key issue in firm growth theory. Drawing on Professor Zhao Dongcheng’s SER-M analytical framework, this study examines Pinduoduo to analyze the staged evolution of its growth mechanisms from the perspective of interactions among the subject (S), resources (R), and the environment (E). Using a case-study approach and inductive analysis, the study identifies dominant mechanisms across the start-up, growth, and internationalization phases. The findings show that Pinduoduo adopted an SRE coordination mechanism for platform cold-start and market entry, an ESR learning and reconfiguration mechanism for scale expansion and efficiency improvement, and an SER balancing mechanism to shape resource rules and institutional environments during internationalization. Overall, its catch-up growth stems from the dynamic transition and co-evolution of multiple mechanisms rather than a single driver. This study enriches the mechanism-based explanation of latecomer platform growth and offers theoretical and practical implications for phased strategic decision-making in platform firms.
Li et al. (Sat,) studied this question.