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The boss of Domino's Pizza Group who indicated the United Kingdom might have reached peak pizza while diversifying the chain into poultry items has been ousted after disagreements with its governing body.

Executive Change

Rennie is departing after a brief tenure in leadership, and will be succeeded on an temporary basis by the company's operations head, Nicola Frampton, while the pizza giant seeks a permanent CEO.

Rennie, who was with the company for more than two decades, had aimed to redirect the UK's biggest pizza takeaway chain towards chicken offerings, stating recently there was not “massive growth” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He said poultry was the quickest rising menu item in the globe.

Board Disagreements

Sources suggest that there was friction between Rennie and the governance team over his approach and direction, although the company's official statement said he was departing “through mutual consent”.

Recent Product Launch

In the autumn, the chain introduced its poultry offering – which Rennie referred to as a “major strategic shift” for the organization – and is trialling it in select stores in the north-west of England and Northern Ireland.

While the company is still intending to launch it across its nearly 1,400 branches in 2026 as scheduled, it considers chicken products as a supplement for its primary pizza operations.

Leadership Comment

The Domino's chair, the Domino's chairman, commented: “The board believes that there are a range of possibilities to drive further growth and profitability in Domino's core business. We are concentrating on finding the ideal CEO to oversee the disciplined execution of that expansion plan.”

Market Challenges

Recently, the pizza delivery giant, which has millions of users in the British Isles, said sales fell by 1.5% in the Q3. In August, it cautioned that the food delivery sector had “grown more challenging” as it attributed economic uncertainty in the run-up to the government announcement and rising wage costs for disappointing revenue and a 15% drop in interim earnings.

Competitors are also struggling. Another major chain revealed the closure of 68 restaurants a recently, after the business behind its outlets fell into administration.

Health Efforts

Responding to customer preferences towards better nutrition, the company has launched lower-calorie options, such as its thin-crust selection of bakes below 400 kcal as well as meat-free and allergy-friendly options. A family-sized pepperoni has 2,311 kcals. A large cheese and tomato pizza has 2,171, while a small has 909 kcal.

Interim Management

Nicola Frampton has been with Domino's since 2021, and had a background at the betting firm William Hill. It is thought that she is not seeking to take on the top job on a full-time basis.

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

Frampton noted these comprised additional efforts on the organization's logistics network and product development, and its loyalty scheme.

The pizza chain is also in need of a long-term chief financial officer until the spring, when a new appointee comes aboard from the Irish cider and beer maker C&C Group. For now, Richard Snow acts as acting financial officer.