Howard Hyams has opened the Christmas Cut Price Shop in Hemel Hempstead after a 23-year absence from the town’s retail scene.
The shop, which he runs with wife Michelle, is where Thorntons in Marlowes used to be.
Mr Hyams, 55, said: “They say the recession is over, but it isn’t. People can always find a pound or 50p but in other places, you are expecting to pay £4 or £5 sometimes.”
He used to own three shops in town, including Marlowes Cards and Hemel Cards.