Summary

Description of the Sunshine Harvester Works' in-house newsletter, the Sunshine Review

'Let's meet one another informally through the medium of "Sunshine Review"'
(Sunshine Review, vol. 1, no.1, July 1948, n.p)

The Sunshine Harvester Works' Printing Press produced many marketing materials including the Sunshine Review, a newsletter distributed to staff. The first edition of the newsletter appeared in 1944. The publication's purpose was to 'acquaint the employees of the doings of their fellows, and to inform them of the interesting facts about the industry in which they work'. Staff contributed to the newsletter's content, while Don McKay served as its editor.

The Sunshine Review offered a highly illustrative and celebratory look at working life at the company. The publication featured lively accounts of social, charitable and sporting events organised by staff, short vignettes on employees' work contributions and new staff appointments. These stories fed into the company's perception of itself as a 'Sunshine family'. This concept projected the firm's staff as a harmonious and united workplace family which worked and played together; where the barrier between management and staff was minimal. The 'Sunshine family' was heavily promoted by the company in the Sunshine Review and official promotional films.

The Sunshine Review underwent many changes during the course of its publication. The first change came in July 1948 when it was transformed into a 16 page magazine, as opposed to a short newsletter. In addition, the magazine featured content previously published in Sunshine Sales and Services, a periodical distributed to branch personnel, agents and others interested in the company's products. As a result, the Sunshine Review included articles relating to the firm's new products and manufacturing processes, as well as insights into company life. The most noticeable change came when Canadian firm Massey-Ferguson took over the company in 1955. The magazine's name changed to the Massey-Ferguson Review and Ben Kerville replaced Don McKay as editor. In addition, the publication focused more on the firm's products and developments in the agricultural sector. Interesting stories about staff and social events continued in a separate publication, the Sunshine Outlook. Production of both publications ceased in 1970-1971 when the company experienced a financial downturn due to a serious drought.

References
Sunshine Review 1945, 'Notice to Contributors', vol. 2, no. 3, p.4.
Sunshine Review 1945, 'Editorial', vol. 2, no. 5, p.3.
Sunshine Review 1948, 'An Invitation from Your Editor', vol. 1, no. 1, n.p.

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