Our analysis of markets, competitors and suppliers in three key Indian export industries-diamonds, garments, and software – sheds light on the effects of India's recent economic reforms on export competitiveness. It also calls attention to the imperative to upgrade in international competition. And finally, it affords some insight into the process of such upgrading in the context of a relatively poor country. Our somewhat unexpected inferences about demand conditions and related and supporting industries suggest the following testable hypothesis: internationally competitive industries from poor countries will tend to have a standalone character, at least intially. That is, they will be relatively detached from both domestic demand and domestic related and supporting industries.