About Us

 This story starts from the back of a farrier trailer in Toowoomba, Queensland…

Settlers co-founder Benjamin Van Der Reest has been a farrier-blacksmith for over 10 years, working throughout southern Queensland. From the South-East to the West, he would service a large variety of clients in a wide range of conditions. One of the things they loved was the cowboy tinctures that Ben would sell from his trailer while shoeing their horses. Oils, ointments, sprays… you name it, Ben had a horse-care solution for you.

Throughout his youth, Ben spent much time working on remote properties learning from “old fellas in the bush”. Being a born problem solver, Ben would apply the ingredients and skills he’d learnt from them to his home-made tinctures. Unfortunately, he has not yet created an insect repellent and it was really affecting his work life.

Working as a farrier is inherently dangerous; in fact, for insurance purposes it is in the same category as bull riding! Add biting insects to the equation and the likelihood of sustaining an injury while working under a horse increases astronomically!

One summer, after being kicked and stomped one too many times by irritated horses swatting at bugs, Ben had had enough. He and myself, Emma Kolodjashnij (medical scientist and Settlers co-founder), sat down and put our heads together. We quickly realised that there was a massive gap in the marketplace for a safe and effective repellent, not to mention that Ben’s clients were crying out for this exact thing! Most of them had sheds full of repellent sprays and ointments that simply didn’t work.

Together, we applied our unique knowledge and skills to create a completely new insect repellent. The goal was simple: repel flies and mosquitoes long enough to get Ben through a full shoeing without being kicked. After much trial and error, and testing in a wide range of conditions, this goal was realised. We had created a super effective and long-lasting bug spray that could be used on people and animals alike!

You little beauty! Or so we thought…

Settlers sprays were flying from the farrier trailer, quickly gaining popularity as well as shelf space among local retailers. This reception lead Ben and I to look at growing our humble brand. So, we did our due diligence and phoned the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicine Association (APVMA) to check regulations. The APVMA advised that Settlers wouldn’t require their approval because of it’s all-natural ingredients. Happy days. Unfortunately, it turns out that this wasn’t entirely true…

In fact, any personal care product claiming or implying to be and ‘insect repellent’, even if it’s made from completely natural ingredients, must be registered with the APVMA. Wouldn’t it have been handy to know that from the beginning!

The application time was estimated to be 5 years and the cost upwards of $150,000! Ben and I decided this was not a viable option for our young start-up.

Candles it is!

What would you do? You’ve now spent 2 years creating this great Aussie-made, natural repellent (that is in high demand) and because of bureaucratic #*@!, getting it to market will sink your start-up? No sales and no product insurance allowed until your application is approved.

Knowing what a gem we’d created, Ben and I would not give up. We once again put our heads together and the decision was made to transfer our patented ingredients into candle and wax melt form. As these are not personal repellent products, they do not fall under such stringent regulations. Plus! As it turned out, Settlers Original Insect Repellent works even better in wax form. It seems everything happens for a reason.

The concept of a great new fly spray for horses had grown and evolved into the creation of new innovative mosquito repellent products: candles and wax melts. Safe for indoor and outdoor use, and safe to use around children and pets.

However, still wanting to be thorough, we sent our new Settlers products far and wide across the globe to be trialled. The reviews were overwhelmingly great! Although most who trialled them were sceptical at first, it did not take them long to comment on the beautiful aroma, the outstanding efficiency and long burn time. Settlers candles and wax melts were solving a worldwide problem. For some people, this problem had never been solved before!

The funny thing was, people were especially grateful that they no longer needed to spray personal repellents onto themselves!

Fast forward, and what was designed to be a simple solution to Ben’s farriering woes, a horse tincture sold from the back of a farrier trailer, has evolved to become an in-demand insect repellent brand across the globe! Although you may not need Settlers to prevent your farriering injuries, our unlikely series of events will most certainly improve your outdoor lifestyle too!

You can rest assured that whether you’re at a party with friends, a barbecue with family, simply want to sit by an open window or adventure across the country, Settlers will always be there to prevent the uninvited guests.

Settlers Original Insect Repellents have been designed by two Aussie battlers who just wanted to solve a problem. They are proudly Australian made for the toughest Aussie conditions, and we plan to keep it that way!

The best part is, other farriers now sit a Settlers candle on their forge to keep the bugs away while shoeing!

Thanks for taking the time to read our story. We are forever grateful for your wonderful support and hope you enjoy the freedom that Settlers brings to your lifestyle!

Ben and Emma xx