This article analyzes innovation on small and medium import-export companies of Bogota from local development, competitiveness and productive transformation. A comparison is made between the information obtained on semi structured interviews and the conceptualization of the theoretical review. The interviewed businessmen agree on the fact that innovation is larger than individual efforts. It is the result of actions taken from theterritory that stimulate local development, dynamics of competitiveness and successful internationalizations. Even though they also recognize that productive alliances allow economies of scale and inside out driven advancements, they are reluctant to participate in them due to the lack of guarantees in shearing their in-hose innovations.