I had experience at a company (Germany) where we got smart home products built (electronics).
Getting them from China was not only cheaper but (to my surprise) faster and better. They got knowledgeable QA people that understood how EU countries need different tweaks, and they got anything we needed done quickly. Shipping was fast enough, and all in all, they just provided a much better and more affordable product than any country in the EU could have done.
It might be different for products that are very innovative, (most shoes aren't), but in that case maybe you can travel to China for a month and iterate quickly with the factory people.
I don't think it's about innovativeness - because I would say the reverse about shoes, the best are (resp. were) made in Northampton (England), and quality suffers if moved to China.
But if you want plastic trainers, no doubt they make the best. I think it's just a simple case of doing a lot of it, specialising, getting good at it, as it would be anywhere. China now has more PCB fab know-how, equipment, people, etc. than anywhere.
I think the innovation too has been outsourced to China, even in fashion. Western brands have been reduced to just specifying what is already available for the most part. It isn't really possible to innovate when you don't own your factories and IP is poorly protected. The simple case of just doing it eventually applies to quality too - many high fashion brands like Burberry have discretely abandoned european manufacturing.
There’s a lot of great shoes still made in Northampton and the surrounding area NPS/Solovair (if you like the Doc Martens aesthetic) and Crown Northampton (if you prefer a sneaker or dress shoe) both brands are well regarded. But alas neither are inexpensive.
Getting them from China was not only cheaper but (to my surprise) faster and better. They got knowledgeable QA people that understood how EU countries need different tweaks, and they got anything we needed done quickly. Shipping was fast enough, and all in all, they just provided a much better and more affordable product than any country in the EU could have done.
It might be different for products that are very innovative, (most shoes aren't), but in that case maybe you can travel to China for a month and iterate quickly with the factory people.