Peak Pizza? Domino's Leader Exits After Move Into Fried Chicken.

A chief executive of Domino's Pizza Group who proposed the UK might have hit peak pizza while broadening the franchise into fried chicken has been removed after tensions with its directors.

Executive Change

Rennie is exiting after only 24 months in the top role, and will be replaced on an temporary basis by the organization's chief operating officer, Frampton, while the pizza giant looks for a long-term chief.

Rennie, who worked for the company for more than two decades, had sought to pivot Britain's biggest pizza takeaway chain towards chicken offerings, commenting in a recent interview there was not “massive growth” left in the British pizza industry. He said poultry was the most rapidly expanding food category in the globe.

Board Disagreements

Reports indicate that there was tension between the CEO and the directors over his approach and management style, although the company's official statement said he was leaving “by mutual agreement”.

Recent Product Introduction

In the autumn, the chain unveiled its poultry offering – which Rennie called a “significant new phase” for the group – and is testing it in select stores in the North West region and the province.

While the business is still going to roll it out across its nearly 1,400 branches in 2026 as intended, it views fried chicken as an addition to its main pizza offerings.

Board Comment

Bull, the company chairman, stated: “The board believes that there are a number of opportunities to enhance value and profitability in the main pizza segment. We are concentrating on selecting the ideal CEO to direct the careful implementation of that growth strategy.”

Industry Difficulties

Earlier this month, Domino's, which has a substantial customer base in the British Isles, said transactions declined by 1.5% in the third quarter. In the summer, it cautioned that the food delivery sector had “grown more challenging” as it attributed reduced spending in the lead-up to the government announcement and rising wage costs for weaker-than-expected sales and a 15 percent decline in six-month income.

Other pizza operators are also experiencing difficulties. Pizza Hut disclosed the closure of multiple locations a recently, after the firm behind its outlets fell into administration.

Health Initiatives

Adapting to market shifts towards better nutrition, Domino's has introduced reduced-calorie products, such as its light base range of bakes below 400 calories as well as meat-free and allergy-friendly pizzas. A large pepperoni pizza has over 2,300 kcal. A large cheese and tomato pizza has 2,171, while a personal has 909 kcal.

Acting Leadership

The interim chief has been with Domino's since 2021, and was formerly with the gaming group a well-known operator. It is believed that she prefers not to take on the top job permanently.

Frampton stated: “The company has a number of ongoing development and operational projects that we will be concentrating on implementing at pace.”

Frampton noted these included further work on the organization's logistics network and new item creation, and its rewards program.

Domino's is also without a permanent CFO until 16 March, when Andrea joins from the Irish cider and beer maker C&C Group. For now, Snow acts as temporary CFO.

Michael Bernard
Michael Bernard

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