STEPHEN Bogue could be called a serial inventor whose entrepreneurial streak is always on the lookout for new ideas and smart products.
STEPHEN Bogue could be called a serial inventor whose entrepreneurial streak is always on the lookout for new ideas and smart products.
Like many small business owners, he thrives on hard work.
"Well I haven't had a holiday in eight years," the founder and managing director of Zenox Industries Global Pty Ltd told WA Business News.
Mr Bogue says the lack of holidays was one of the only negatives he has faced since starting his own business back in 1999, but is upbeat after launching his latest product.
His Perth-based lubrication supplier has developed more than 20 products ranging across the automotive, pharmaceutical and irrigation industries.
Despite this eclectic combination, Mr Bogue said he had an ability to recognise a need in the market and cater to it.
"We think, how can we do it better? That's the key issue; if you can't do it better, don't bother. We need to be able to add value to the marketplace where there is demand," Mr Bogue said.
Mr Bogue's latest invention is a keyboard air cleaner and sanitiser.
The product, which was five months in development, tackles a worldwide issue that has been affecting computer users for years.
Dirty keyboards have even given rise to a new phrase - 'qwerty tummy' - a condition named after the first six letters on a keyboard.
Mr Bogue said only a few products catered to the problem, but none was Australian and most were inadequate.
Hours of research and development with his part-time industrial chemist led to the emergence of his newest product, with sales of 1,000 units in the first few weeks and production under way for a further 4,000 units.
Mr Bogue expects the keyboard air cleaner and sanitiser to overtake Zenox's pop-up sprinkler lubricant, which sold 22,000 units last summer, as its most popular product.
"Currently the business is nearly doubling every year but I believe this product alone has the value to nearly triple the company's sales," Mr Bogue said.
Zenox's focus is on finding the niche and bringing something new.
"We try to look for a new product every year, we try to get a niche product not already on the market. As a small business we can get it moving much quicker than bigger companies," he said.
Mr Bogue describes himself as proudly Western Australian and always offers his products to WA companies first.
He also has a simple formula for pursuing success.
"Listening to other people and being on the ground floor, not just sitting in an office and snubbing everything," he said.
A sporting fanatic, the 52 year old uses a cricket analogy to describe what he gets out of the business.
"It's like getting a century, there's that sense of achievement. When you bring out a product like this that is unique and really solves a problem it's very rewarding."
