Proud Wiradjuri man Nathan Dureau has transitioned from underground coal mining to running an eco-friendly cleaning products company. At 35, he recalls his journey into the chemical industry began around seven years ago, sparked by the birth of his first child.

"Around the time we were having our first kid, I went down a rabbit hole with household chemicals, which opened my eyes to what we use around homes and businesses," he told Indigenous Business Review.

Collaborating with innovative chemical engineers, Nathan was inspired to create environmentally friendly products. His Aboriginal heritage and passion for sustainable practices led to the founding of Bayar Jagun with his wife in 2021.

Nathan ensured his products were cruelty-free, vegan, and biodegradable. They are made from plant-based ingredients, free from toxic chemicals, parabens, alcohol, and palm oil.

"We have been chipping away at it for a while, then did some research to prove what we are doing is non-toxic," he said. "But seeing how horrendous and toxic many products are was worse than I thought."

Convincing consumers of the safety and efficacy of his products has been challenging. Nathan noted that shoppers often default to brand-name products without understanding their contents.

"To change people's minds is a whole kettle of fish in itself. That's been the most difficult part," he said.

"Everyone claims their products are eco-friendly, but it can be hard to navigate the truth."

Despite these challenges, Nathan has developed an impressive range of products, including an all-surface cleaner, bathroom cleaner, dishwashing liquid, disinfectant spray, floor cleaner, hand and body wash, hand sanitiser, multi-purpose degreaser, produce wash, toilet cleaner, window cleaner, and antibacterial spray.

Some of his products are now available in almost 1000 Woolworths stores nationwide, thanks to a successful pitch at a Supply Nations event.

"We got in with the room sprays and linen sprays, which is a different category from our normal products," he said. "We partnered with Woolies to use one of the room sprays and another fruiter one, so we've got two products there now."

Nathan emphasized that getting products into stores is just one part of the challenge; getting them off the shelves is crucial. Competing with big brands that spend heavily on marketing requires strategic efforts.

Mr Dureau also recounted the business struggles during COVID-19, including navigating bureaucratic hurdles.

"Even though we had all the approvals, we had to get registered with the TGA because of COVID. We had to stop trading until everything was approved," he said. "We were around 88 on the approval list, which delayed our sales and cost us contracts."

Despite these setbacks, Nathan remains optimistic.

"We started great but lost a lot of contracts because we couldn't sell for a while. But we are still hanging in there."