Life After the Deal: Inside the First Year of Owning a Business
About this Event
The deal closes. Everyone shakes hands. Then you show up Monday morning and the real work starts.
Andrew Wahl, Gabrielle Rubenstein, and Max Wahl bought Ace-Pak Products, a Central Indiana packaging, janitorial, and safety supplier, and spent the next year finding out what owning it actually means. Two years in, they can look back and walk through the parts nobody puts in the highlight reel.
This is not a talk about getting a deal done. It is an honest conversation about everything that comes after. The first day you realize the books live in a stack of notebooks. The working capital that is not sitting in the account like you assumed. The delivery van that does not fit where it is supposed to go. And the slow work of turning a business that ran on one person's memory into one you can actually see, measure, and grow.
What we'll get into
- Day one. What you inherit, what surprises you, and what breaks before lunch.
- The first 90 days. Getting real eyes on the numbers, moving off notebooks and dead software, and deciding what to fix first.
- Year one and onward. The digital and marketing overhaul, getting the right people in the right seats, and learning to see the next bottleneck before it costs you.
- What's next. Where they are now, and why they are already looking at the next acquisition.
- Expect candor. These three sit in different seats at the same company. A broker and dealmaker, a finance and operations lead, and the partner running it day to day. You get the same year from three honest angles.
Who should be in the room
Owners and operators running Indiana businesses, and the people working to buy one. Whether you are years into it or still deciding, this is the conversation you wish someone had with you before you signed.
How the night runs
- 4:30 to 5:30. Doors, drinks, and networking.
- 5:30 to 6:30. The panel, plus your questions.
- 6:30 to 7:30. More networking.
Hosted at The District Tap Northside, in the Rickhouse room, with thanks to Bob Kort for opening the doors.
Your ticket
General admission is $15 and includes two drink tickets and food. OWN members attend free. Enter the email tied to your OWN membership as the promo code at checkout, and your ticket is comped.
About Ace-Pak
Ace-Pak Products is a family-owned, Indianapolis-based distributor of packaging, janitorial, and safety supplies, serving the Midwest since 1984. What started as a single-truck operation now runs a catalog of more than 20,000 products for warehouses, manufacturers, food processors, healthcare facilities, schools, and property managers. The team stays hands-on and local, built on long-term relationships rather than transactions.
Meet the panel
Andrew Wahl is a partner of Ace-Pak Products, a Central Indiana supplier of packaging, janitorial, and safety products that helps businesses streamline their everyday operations. In addition to leading Ace-Pak, Andrew is a Business Advisor with Indiana Business Advisors, where he helps business owners buy and sell privately held companies. As an entrepreneur himself, he has personally bought, built, and sold businesses, including founding and successfully selling TopShot Aerial Photography in 2023. His firsthand experience gives him a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities business owners face. Andrew is passionate about building relationships, supporting the local business community, and helping companies grow and succeed.
Gabrielle Rubenstein is a partner of Ace-Pak Products, a Central Indiana supplier of packaging, janitorial, and safety products that helps businesses streamline their everyday operations. In addition to leading Ace-Pak, Gabrielle is the Vice President of Land Acquisition and Development at the Buckingham companies, where she leads the sourcing, underwriting, and development strategy for multifamily communities across the Southeast United States. She has spearheaded national land acquisition efforts securing land contracts totaling approximately $800 million in total project cost. Entrepreneurial by nature, Gabrielle got her start in real estate doing residential rehabs on her own before transitioning full time into the industry. She holds a Master's in Finance from Indiana University and a Bachelor's from Indiana University, where she competed as a member of the Women's Tennis Team.
Max Wahl is the managing partner of Ace-Pak Products and the operator running the business day to day. Full bio coming soon.
OWN Indiana is the year-round community for the people who build, run, and buy Indiana businesses. Not on Operator Notes yet? Subscribe to our newsletter at ownindiana.org.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 15.00
