FIELD NOTES FROM STONY PLAIN
The Year One Blog.
Compliance walkthroughs, AI agent recipes, vertical playbooks, and honest stories from Edmonton metro Year One operators.
UPCOMING · COMPLIANCE
The 8 Alberta Compliance Deadlines That Kill 60% of New Trades Operators
Quarterly GST. Annual WCB. Trade cert renewal. Municipal business licence. The eight things every solo Alberta tradesperson must hit, when they hit, and why your bookkeeper probably won't catch all of them.
Coming May 2026
UPCOMING · TRADES
Why Your AB Prepaid Contractor Licence is Worth $5k Even Though It Only Costs $200
Service Alberta enforcement is real. The licence is what separates legitimate operators from cash-only handymen. Here's the math on what one missed licence actually costs.
Coming May 2026
UPCOMING · AI AGENTS
Building an AI Receptionist That Doesn't Sound Like a Telemarketer
The Vapi voice agent prompts, brand-voice tuning, and human-escalation logic Bit Rage uses to make AI Receptionist actually book customers — not piss them off.
Coming May 2026
UPCOMING · RESTAURANT
AHS Food Premises Inspections: The Top 30 Violations That Get You Closed
Edmonton AHS doesn't mess around. Here's what they look for, what triggers immediate closure, and the daily checklist that keeps you bulletproof.
Coming June 2026
UPCOMING · TRUCKING
IFTA Quarterly Returns: How a Missed Filing Audits You for Two Years
The trucking owner-operator's most-skipped compliance task. Why the audit is brutal. How AI fuel-tax tracking eliminates the risk.
Coming June 2026
UPCOMING · BUSINESS MODEL
Why "Business in a Box" Doesn't Work — and What Year One Specialist Means Instead
The case against generic SaaS bundles, business-formation mills, and franchise systems for Year One operators in Edmonton metro. What actually works.
Coming June 2026