Q:: I understand you are the new owner of The Digichick. When did this happen and how did that come to be?
Nicole::
Yes! I am. Well, I had been at The Digichick since August of last year and I had told the current owner, Kim, that I was happy to help with anything at any time. Because of my geeky background, I knew a bit about the different platforms that were used to run The Digichick's forums, gallery and blog. I also offered to help Kim out with organizing our shop collabs, too. I guess through that she got to know me well enough to think that I would be a good fit to take over for her as the new "Momma Chick." She said she felt confident I'd take good care of her baby and I'm certainly doing my best!

Q:: The Digichick has been around since 2005. Can you give me a brief history of the store including how it was started, and who the previous owners were?
Nicole::
Well, I feel like a bit of a "newbie" here. I've only been around the digital world myself since July of 2007, so I don't feel like I really know a lot of history, but from what I've gathered The Digichick was first opened by Holly McCaig in 2005 and then was owned by Laura Alpuche and then later Kimberly Giarrusso.

Q:: Where is The Digichick located?
Nicole::
On the world wide web! (laughs) But I live in Columbus, Ohio.

Q:: Prior to this, you owned your own store, Sugarplum Paperie and were one of the Sunshine girls at Sunshine Studio Scrap. Are you still actively involved in these sites?
Nicole::
Yes, I am! I love my little Sugarplum Paperie site and even though it takes some work to keep up with both The Digichick and my Sugarplum shop, I keep at it because it's still my baby and my dream come to life. I don't know when I'll be able to find the time to redesign it like I would like to, but that can wait. And I've also recently come back to Sunshine Studio Scraps to help them out behind the scenes as they need it.

Q:: The Sunshine Girls seem to have a special alliance even though many now sell at different stores. What makes this group so close?
Nicole::
Sometimes I like to think of us as the "Graduating Class of 2007" because I feel like we went through some amazing changes together and that created a bond that has made for lasting friendships. The group started because we wanted to do something nice for the digital community but we stayed together because we felt so safe and comfortable with one another. And still to this day, my two closest friends in this community are original Sunshine Girls. We just shared our tips and tricks with one another and gave each other constructive criticism so that everyone was able to learn more and grow into a better designer. And I think because we shared so much with one another in an industry where everyone seems to be looking out for themselves, we really came to love and appreciate one another.

Q:: What is the most challenging thing about being a new store owner?
Nicole::
I think for me it was having to hit the ground running and keep things working smoothly when I didn't know all the ins and outs of how the shop works yet. And now the most challenging thing is when we have some crazy error pop up on the site. With so many people visiting the site, I want to have things back in order right away. I'm very happy to be married to a web designer whenever something goes wrong with the store. Usually Travis, my husband, can fix whatever it is within an hour or two.

Q:: What changes have you made since becoming owner of The Digichick?
Nicole::
We have made lots of little cosmetic changes to the site, like adding detailed images to the store. That was something I was very happy to add because I knew it was something that Kim wanted to do for us and I also think most people expect it these days. And we also launched The Hybrid Chick blog. But as for the all the basics of The Digichick, they are still the same. We still have our new releases on Thursdays and we still have an open gallery and challenges in our forums. One of the things that made me happy when I took over as the owner of The Digichick was that I really liked how Kim had set things up and I didn't feel like anything really needed to be changed.