Masters of Craft: Old Jobs in the New Urban Economy Hardcover – May 9, 2017

"A sociologist walks in a bar . . . and discovers the soul of a new economy . . . Mr. Ocejo has a good eye and ear. He has talked to a lot of people. And his book is full of acutely heard and closely observed details."--William L. Hamilton, Wall Street Journal

"Why are upscale versions of traditional manufacturing and service jobs considered hip, desirable, and cool? Ocejo, a sociology professor, examines the ‘urban village model’ that has revitalized urban areas. He looks at four elements of gentrification--craft breweries, barber shops, whole-animal butcher shops, and cocktail bars. . . . Using his own field experiences and interviews with business owners and workers, the author identifies transformations in the U.S. cultural elite that have led to this new service economy, one that is strikingly male-dominated. He uses Chelsea Market in Manhattan as an example of how the reappearance of businesses formerly considered essential, but not prestigious, in exclusive and expensive form mirrors the gentrification of the neighborhoods that once supported them in their previous incarnations. The book reads well. . . . Sociologists and others with a serious interest in hipster culture will learn much from it."--Publishers Weekly

"[Ocejo] engagingly portrays several workers, tracing their motivations for choosing a job, their satisfactions and challenges, and plans for their futures. A close-up and often entertaining look at new service jobs in an urban economy."--Kirkus

"A fascinating book, full of valuable observations and insights. Particularly impressive is the way it captures the distinctive atmospheres of these jobs."--William Skidelsky, Financial Times

"I definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in the evolution of labor markets, how America will respond to ongoing automation, the production of status, and the role of men in an increasingly feminized society."--Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution

"This innovative book immerses readers in the social worlds of artisanal service workers and the tony, omnivorous taste communities they serve, and deepens our understanding of the possibilities of sustaining careers based on authentic and transparent client encounters in a precarious urban economy. Ocejo offers new typologies of artisanal career paths and worker-client relationships that will benefit future scholarship and guide aspiring freelance artisans as they master their craft."--Daniel B. Cornfield, Vanderbilt University, author of Beyond the Beat: Musicians Building Community in Nashville

"Masters of Craft provides a powerful lens into two of the most powerful forces in society today: the gentrification of our cities and the transformation of work. Through his detailed research on a series of new craft industries―bartending, distilling, barbering, and butchering―Richard Ocejo helps us better understand the opportunities and challenges of reurbanization and the transformation of older manual labor jobs into new hybrid forms of knowledge work."--Richard Florida, University of Toronto, author of The Rise of the Creative Class

"Though we often think about today’s trendy consumption in terms of ‘tastes,’ Masters of Craft gives us an inside view of its true base: the highly skilled craftsmen who create the artisanal cocktails, nose-to-tail meat cuisine, and fashionable haircuts on which the hippest part of the urban cultural ecosystem relies. By showing how they transform raw materials into the bread and butter of the creative class, Ocejo provides a fascinating cross section of the new urban economy. This is essential reading for sociologists of culture, work, cities, and consumption."--Sharon Zukin, author of Naked City: The Death and Life of Authentic Urban Places

"A wonderful contribution to the field. Masters of Craft is an engaging and well-written addition to the emerging literature on aesthetic labor and the changing social meaning of jobs--particularly now in the postrecession era, when many manual labor jobs have disappeared. I truly enjoyed this book."―Yasemin Besen-Cassino, author of Consuming Work: Youth Labor in America

"Masters of Craft is a great read. Ocejo's rich case studies of barbers, bartenders, distillers, and butchers reveal how workers in seemingly functional occupations can come to view their work as a form of art. This is an important book that demands attention and that will influence how scholars approach the intersection of work and taste."--Timothy J. Dowd, Emory University