In my aim to be a good third year student, I recently decided to attend an extra lecture hosted by my department titled âMeaningful work after the middle class: the case of âneo-craftâ workâ. While I was worried it may turn out to be quite a boring one hour, I actually gained really interesting insights on the current state of industries that the younger generations are pursuing. It turns out neo-craft work is something I already engaged with, and the lecture made me reflect on possible career paths which I thought I would attempt to share through this article.
Youâre probably wondering what on earth neo-craft work is, so let me try to define it for you. In the words of Alessandro Gandini, (the host of the lecture I attended), neo-craft work, with the neo aspect referring to neoliberalism, is a type of work traditionally performed by the working class, or considered low status, but has now gained a new higher desirability by being infused with craft principles. Basically, you can think of the type of jobs and industries which would have been called âhipsterâ a few years ago (but are no longer called this because hipsters are no longer really that cool), are being framed as desirable jobs for the middle class, like craft beer, artisan coffee roasters, jewellers, ceramists, etcâŠ, you can probably tell where Iâm going here. I think weâve all seen those stories on social media where people have ditched their job to pursue their passion project, and maybe now they live in a van or something and have managed to set up a successful business. This is what Gandini is referring to as neo-craft work â a heavy romanticisation of these craft jobs where people are ditching the corporate world to pursue a new form of work that gives more meaning to their lives.
In fact, just the other day, I was at a Sunday farmers market where I stumbled across a stall selling âCraft Peanut Butterâ and I thought wow okay thatâs one I havenât heard of before. My mum and I ended up tasting all these different craft peanut butters with different roasts, and purchased an admittedly very nice tasting, but also very expensive ÂŁ4.50 jar of peanut butter. And I think this is great proof of the way the neo-craft industries work. Not only is this narrative of ditching the corporate world romanticised, but so is the product itself â something that Gandini argued is that these products often have some kind of narrative to accompany their consumption experience. In fact, just a quick online search for this brand of peanut butter, bought me to this story of how this London couple, who initially made this peanut butter for themselves at home, decided to start a business out of it during lockdown, and eventually quit their jobs to sell their craft peanut butter. I think this is a narrative we see quite often these days, and I think itâs something we often buy into as consumers. While millennials may be the demographic currently dominating this world of neo-craft work, I think Gen Z enjoy buying into the products and this romanticisation of ditching the corporate life. Whether itâs your cup of morning coffee from a specialty cafĂ©, buying cute jewellery from an Instagram small-business, or going pottery painting with friends, I think Gen Z seem to enjoy consuming these products and craft practices (or I realised I definitely do at least).
This leads me to another interesting aspect mentioned by Gandini â and thatâs the mobilisation of social media that often takes place by these workers. He argued that in an attempt for their businesses to flourish, neo-craft workers will often turn to social media platforms to make their businesses visible. In fact, he even described how in many neo-craft workspaces, you will often find an âInstagram cornerâ, a place specifically dedicated to taking pictures of their products. Here I think we can see how neo-craft work may appeal even more so to Gen Z than millennials, who are used to engaging in content production and sharing their consumption experiences online. (I donât know about you, but personally I love to search TikTok for all the small-business pop-ups and cute cafes that seem to constantly appear in London â definitely something that could be considered part of the neo-craft industries).
So what does this mean for the future of our careers? While itâs not for everyone, I definitely think there is a discourse present online, where corporate jobs are no longer that appealing to us and instead, we seem to like buying into the idea of career paths that have a much more meaningful, personally fulfilling quality. While previously office jobs seemed to make promises that fulfilled the wants of the middle class, these neo-craft narratives suggest this is no longer the case. However, where does this leave the actual working class? If these jobs are now being seen as much more desirable and performed by the middle class, where does this leave those who participated in these jobs before? Is neo-craft work leading to a gentrification of the workplace? And here we can see the tensions that arise with neo-craft work, while it may offer a disconnection from corporate work and symbolic, personal rewards, there is also potential for the neo-craft worker to end up engaging in unstable, low-paying employment, along with a pressure to constantly post on social media to make their business visible. While the reality of neo-craft may not be all perfect, I think it can still definitely appeal to Gen Z who are wary of the corporate world, who want to make sure they can protect their mental health and prioritise something they can take enjoyment from.