•Internationalization patterns of five French SMEs are observed over several decades.•The internationalization of SMEs is a process composed of several stages.•The identified stages are characterized by increasing, decreasing and re-increasing commitment to foreign markets.•They reflect characteristics of different internationalization models proposed in the literature.•Stages of internationalization can be triggered by internal and external factors. SMEs attempt to accelerate and diversify their international expansion strategies. The purpose of this article is to identify the internationalization stages followed by traditional SMEs to seize global market opportunities. The authors analyze the internationalization paths of five French SMEs operating in traditional manufacturing industries. The empirical study is mainly based on 66 interviews. The findings indicate that the internationalization process of SMEs continues to follow several stages, but that their commitment to foreign markets may increase, decrease and re-increase. The identified stages, which can be triggered by internal and external factors, reflect characteristics of different internationalization models proposed in the literature.