🔗 Share this article

A head of Domino's Pizza Group who proposed the UK might have hit maximum pizza demand while broadening the company into chicken products has been ousted after tensions with its directors.

Leadership Change

The former CEO is exiting after only 24 months in charge, and will be replaced on an temporary basis by the organization's operations head, Frampton, while the pizza giant seeks a permanent CEO.

Rennie, who served at Domino's for a substantial period, had attempted to shift Britain's biggest pizza food delivery firm towards fried chicken, stating earlier this month there was not “huge potential” left in the UK's pizza market. He noted chicken was the most rapidly expanding food category in the globe.

Governance Friction

Sources suggest that there was friction between the CEO and the governance team over his strategy and business vision, although Domino's official statement said he was stepping down “by mutual agreement”.

New Product Introduction

In September, Domino's introduced its Chick 'N' Dip offering – which Rennie referred to as a “significant new phase” for the group – and is trialling it in select stores in the north-west of England and the province.

While the company is still going to roll it out across its extensive network in the coming year as planned, it considers chicken products as complementary to its main pizza offerings.

Leadership Comment

The Domino's chair, the company chair, said: “The board believes that there are a range of possibilities to drive further growth and value creation in Domino's core business. We are prioritizing selecting the ideal CEO to direct the careful implementation of that development approach.”

Market Challenges

Recently, Domino's, which has millions of users in the UK and Ireland, said sales fell by one and a half percent in the latest quarter. In August, it warned that the food delivery sector had “intensified” as it attributed reduced spending in the run-up to the budget and increasing labor expenses for below-target performance and a 15% drop in interim earnings.

Competitors are also facing challenges. Pizza Hut disclosed the closure of multiple locations a recently, after the company behind its UK venues entered insolvency.

Health Efforts

Adapting to customer preferences towards healthier eating, Domino's has launched lower-calorie products, such as its light base line of pizzas below 400 calories as well as plant-based and wheat-free pizzas. A large pepperoni pizza has 2,311 calories. A family cheese pizza has 2,171 kcal, while a small has under 1,000 calories.

Interim Leadership

Frampton has been with the company since the recent past, and was formerly with the gambling company William Hill. It is believed that she is not seeking to take on the chief executive role permanently.

Frampton stated: “The company has a number of active growth and performance initiatives that we will be dedicated to implementing at a rapid rate.”

Frampton noted these included ongoing development on the company's logistics network and new item creation, and its customer retention initiative.

Domino's is also without a permanent finance director until 16 March, when Andy Andrea comes aboard from the beverage producer a well-known firm. Until then, Richard Snow is acting financial officer.