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The head of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who proposed the UK might have hit peak pizza while diversifying the franchise into chicken products has been ousted after conflicts with its directors.

Executive Change

Rennie is exiting after only 24 months in charge, and will be replaced on an interim basis by the company's operations head, Frampton, while Domino's looks for a long-term chief.

The outgoing executive, who worked for Domino's for a substantial period, had sought to pivot Britain's largest pizza delivery company towards poultry-based products, commenting recently there was not “huge potential” left in the UK's pizza market. He observed poultry was the fastest-growing menu item in the globe.

Governance Tensions

It is understood that there was friction between Rennie and the directors over his focus and direction, although Domino's release said he was stepping down “through mutual consent”.

Recent Product Introduction

In the autumn, Domino's launched its poultry product line – which Rennie referred to as a “bold new chapter” for the organization – and is trialling it in over 200 locations in the north-west of England and Northern Ireland.

While the company is still planning to expand it across its nearly 1,400 branches next year as intended, it considers fried chicken as an addition to its main pizza offerings.

Leadership Statement

The Domino's chair, the company chair, commented: “The board believes that there are a number of opportunities to enhance value and value creation in our primary operations. We are prioritizing finding the ideal CEO to lead the disciplined execution of that expansion plan.”

Industry Challenges

Recently, Domino's, which has a substantial customer base in the British Isles, said orders declined by 1.5 percent in the latest quarter. In the summer, it cautioned that the food delivery sector had “intensified” as it blamed economic uncertainty in the period before the budget and increasing labor expenses for disappointing revenue and a significant fall in interim earnings.

Other pizza operators are also struggling. Pizza Hut announced the shutting of multiple locations a recently, after the business behind its UK venues faced financial collapse.

Wellness Initiatives

Adapting to consumer trends towards better nutrition, the company has introduced light products, such as its thin-crust selection of bakes below 400 kcals as well as plant-based and gluten-free pizzas. A big pepperoni bake has 2,311 kcals. A family cheese pizza has over 2,100, while a individual has under 1,000 calories.

Interim Management

The interim chief has been with Domino's since 2021, and previously worked for the gaming group William Hill. It is understood that she is not seeking to occupy the top job long-term.

Frampton stated: “We have a number of ongoing expansion and performance initiatives that we will be dedicated to carrying out at a rapid rate.”

She added these comprised ongoing development on the company's logistics network and product development, and its rewards program.

The pizza chain is also lacking a long-term finance director until 16 March, when a new appointee joins from the Irish cider and beer maker C&C Group. In the meantime, Richard Snow acts as interim finance chief.