🔗 Share this article

A head of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who suggested the UK might have reached peak pizza while expanding the franchise into poultry items has been removed after tensions with its directors.

Executive Shake-Up

Rennie is departing after just two years in the top role, and will be succeeded on an temporary basis by the company's operations head, Frampton, while Domino's searches for a long-term chief.

The outgoing executive, who worked for Domino's for more than two decades, had sought to pivot the UK's biggest pizza food delivery firm towards poultry-based products, remarking in a recent interview there was not “significant expansion” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He said poultry was the quickest rising food category in the globe.

Governance Disagreements

Sources suggest that there was friction between the CEO and the governance team over his focus and business vision, although the company's announcement said he was stepping down “through mutual consent”.

Recent Brand Introduction

In September, the chain unveiled its poultry brand – which Rennie described as a “major strategic shift” for the company – and is testing it in over 200 locations in the north-west of England and the province.

While the company is still going to roll it out across its extensive network in 2026 as intended, it regards fried chicken as an addition to its core pizza business.

Board Comment

Bull, the company chairman, said: “We are confident that there are a series of prospects to boost expansion and performance improvement in our primary operations. We are concentrating on selecting the ideal CEO to direct the careful implementation of that growth strategy.”

Market Challenges

Earlier this month, Domino's, which has millions of users in the UK and Ireland, said orders dipped by 1.5 percent in the Q3. In August, it cautioned that the takeaway market had “grown more challenging” as it blamed weaker consumer confidence in the run-up to the government announcement and rising wage costs for below-target performance and a 15% drop in six-month income.

Rival chains are also experiencing difficulties. Another major chain announced the closing of multiple locations a recently, after the firm behind its UK venues fell into administration.

Health Efforts

Trying to keep up with consumer trends towards balanced diets, Domino's has introduced reduced-calorie products, such as its light base line of bakes below 400 kcal as well as meat-free and gluten-free pizzas. A family-sized pepperoni has 2,311 kcals. A big margherita has 2,171 kcal, while a individual has 909 calories.

Interim Leadership

Frampton has been with the company since the recent past, and previously worked for the gaming group William Hill. It is understood that she does not want to take on the CEO position permanently.

She said: “The company has a several active expansion and performance initiatives that we will be concentrating on executing at speed.”

Frampton noted these comprised ongoing development on the organization's procurement system and product development, and its customer retention initiative.

The pizza chain is also in need of a long-term finance director until 16 March, when Andrea comes aboard from the Irish cider and beer maker a well-known firm. For now, Richard Snow is interim finance chief.