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

Leadership Change

Rennie is leaving after a brief tenure in the top role, and will be replaced on an interim basis by the organization's operations head, Frampton, while Domino's looks for a permanent CEO.

Rennie, who served at the company for a substantial period, had aimed to pivot the UK's largest pizza takeaway chain towards chicken offerings, commenting recently there was not “huge potential” left in the British pizza industry. He said poultry was the quickest rising menu item in the globe.

Governance Disagreements

Reports indicate that there was tension between the CEO and the governance team over his approach and direction, although the company's release said he was stepping down “by mutual agreement”.

Recent Product Launch

In September, Domino's launched its Chick 'N' Dip product line – which the former chief described as a “significant new phase” for the company – and is trialling it in 210 outlets in the North West region and Northern Ireland.

While the company is still going to roll it out across its almost 1,400 stores in the coming year as planned, it regards chicken products as complementary to its main pizza offerings.

Board Statement

The Domino's chair, the company chairman, stated: “We are confident that there are a number of opportunities to drive further growth and value creation in our primary operations. We are concentrating on identifying the ideal CEO to direct the disciplined execution of that growth strategy.”

Market Challenges

Recently, Domino's, which has 13 million customers in the UK and Ireland, said transactions declined by 1.5% in the Q3. In the summer, it alerted that the takeaway market had “grown more challenging” as it attributed economic uncertainty in the period before the government announcement and higher payroll outlays for below-target performance and a 15% drop in half-year profits.

Other pizza operators are also struggling. Another major chain revealed the shutting of multiple locations a month ago, after the company behind its British operations entered insolvency.

Wellness Initiatives

Responding to market shifts towards better nutrition, the company has rolled out lower-calorie options, such as its light base range of bakes below 400 kcal as well as vegan and gluten-free options. A large pepperoni pizza has 2,311 kcals. A large cheese and tomato pizza has 2,171, while a personal has 909 calories.

Interim Leadership

The interim chief has been with the company since 2021, and had a background at the betting firm William Hill. It is understood that she is not seeking to assume the top job long-term.

She commented: “Our team has a several current growth and performance initiatives that we will be focused on carrying out at a rapid rate.”

She added these included further work on the company's procurement system and product development, and its customer retention initiative.

Domino's is also in need of a long-term CFO until March 16, when Andy Andrea comes aboard from the beverage producer C&C Group. In the meantime, Snow is temporary CFO.