Potty talk. Banned from most family dinner tables, it's hard to avoid for Kim and Jason Graham-Nye, founders of the company gDiapers—which makes eco–friendly, flushable diapers—and parents to sons Fynn, 6, and Harper, 3. "We were at a barbecue two years ago, and another mom scolded Fynn for talking about poop," Kim recalls. "I felt bad for the poor guy, because we say the word fifty thousand times a day. It's our whole business!"
It's only fitting that Fynn's bottom was the first to test their product before the Graham-Nyes launched it in 2005. The couple were living in Jason's hometown of Sydney, Australia, when Kim became pregnant. They soon began contemplating diapers for their firstborn. "Of course, there were only two choices," says Jason. "Disposables, which are horrendous for the environment but very functional, and cloth ones, which are not very functional, and still not great for the environment because of the water used to wash them." Then Kim had to wear Depends for a day and a half after Fynn's birth, which added a new dimension to the issue. "When you're the one wearing plastic underwear, you're acutely aware of the lack-of-breathability aspect," she says.
While researching options, the Graham-Nyes found a biochemist in Tasmania who was selling a flushable diaper to a small clientele. A new business venture came into focus for Jason, a stockbroker turned teacher, and Kim, a Canadian who worked in HIV prevention. They were able to buy the rights to the diaper everywhere except Australia and New Zealand—a huge downside, since it meant leaving Jason's family.
The couple made the tough decision to move to America to build their business and settled in Portland, Oregon, a city they chose for its progressive vibe. Kim was seven months pregnant at the time. "It wasn't easy," she says. "I was thinking, I can't wait until the baby comes and I can sleep—not very good logic."
After revamping the biochemist's design, they introduced the gDiaper, which consists of a cotton cover, a reusable liner, and a biodegradable, flushable pad. Soon cloth-diaper dropouts came calling, as did parents curious about the new hybrid they were finding on Whole Foods shelves. Now gDiapers have become, well, cool, at least as far as diapers go. (Julia Roberts has been known to rave about them.)
But the Graham-Nyes know their product isn't perfect yet. Many parents can't get over the sometimes messy process of flushing the inserts. "We know that even one extra step is a lot to ask of parents," says Kim. "We're working like mad to improve the experience." Still, it's obvious they're onto something: Sales have doubled each year since the launch.
Even as the company grows, it still feels very homegrown. The family lives upstairs from the gDiapers office, and the 19 employees enjoy benefits that are rare in the corporate world: yoga breaks, four weeks of paid vacation, and free on-site day care. During a typical workday, staffers' kids crawl around the backyard, many with the signature g poking out of the tops of their pants. But not Harper Graham-Nye. "Sadly, Harper potty-trained very early," Kim says. "We were like, 'No, no—we need you for at least another year of testing!'"
