A 'value chain' describes the full range of activities required to bring a product or service from conception, through the different phases of production (involving a combination of physical transformation and the input of various producer services), delivery to final consumers and final disposal after use (Kaplinsky and Morris 2001).

The Smile Curve describes the whole range of activities that are performed to bring a product from its conception through all the different stages of production, up to the end users and beyond. These tasks may be executed within a single firm or divided among different companies. The middle of the smile  (the lowest point of value creation) is where the actual manufacturing takes place. The highest points of value creation are found at the corners, with R&D at the beginning and customer service and services at the end.

"Upgrading means acquiring the technological, institutional and market capabilities that allow corporations to improve their competitiveness and to move into the higher-value activities. In short, upgrading is the process of trading up" ~~ Point Well Investment.

The traditional upgrading sequence has emerged that of process upgrading moving into product upgrading and on into functional and inter-chain upgradind. PWI supports product designers, startup companies, manufacturing firms and big brands who are seeking for global markets and needs adjustment in different forms of upgrading through the upgrading strategies listed in the figure below.