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A chief executive of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who suggested the United Kingdom might have hit pizza saturation while diversifying the company into fried chicken has been ousted after disagreements with its board.

Executive Shake-Up

Andrew Rennie is exiting after a brief tenure in charge, and will be replaced on an interim basis by the company's operations head, Nicola Frampton, while Domino's searches for a long-term chief.

Rennie, who served at the company for a substantial period, had aimed to shift the UK's largest pizza food delivery firm towards chicken offerings, stating recently there was not “significant expansion” left in the British pizza industry. He said chicken was the quickest rising menu item in the world.

Governance Tensions

Sources suggest that there was tension between Rennie and the governance team over his focus and direction, although Domino's announcement said he was departing “through mutual consent”.

Recent Brand Introduction

In the autumn, Domino's launched its poultry offering – which the former chief called 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 business is still intending to launch it across its almost 1,400 stores in the coming year as planned, it views chicken products as complementary to its primary pizza operations.

Board Statement

Ian Bull, the Domino's chairman, commented: “The board believes that there are a series of prospects to enhance value and performance improvement in our primary operations. We are concentrating on identifying the ideal CEO to direct the disciplined execution of that expansion plan.”

Market Difficulties

In the latest update, the pizza delivery giant, which has 13 million customers in the UK and Ireland, said orders declined by one and a half percent in the latest quarter. In August, it alerted that the quick-service industry had “intensified” as it attributed reduced spending in the run-up to the budget and rising wage costs for below-target performance and a significant fall in half-year profits.

Competitors are also facing challenges. Pizza Hut announced the closing of dozens of outlets a month ago, after the company behind its UK venues entered insolvency.

Health Initiatives

Trying to keep up with consumer trends towards healthier eating, Domino's has launched light options, such as its thin-crust line of bakes below 400 kcal as well as vegan and allergy-friendly options. A big pepperoni bake has over 2,300 kcal. A family cheese pizza has 2,171 kcal, while a small has 909 calories.

Acting Leadership

Nicola Frampton has been with the company since 2021, and was formerly with the gambling company a well-known operator. It is thought that she is not seeking to assume the chief executive role permanently.

Frampton stated: “The company has a number of ongoing development and performance initiatives that we will be dedicated to carrying out at pace.”

She added these involved additional efforts on the organization's supply chain and menu innovation, and its loyalty scheme.

Domino's is also in need of a permanent chief financial officer until March 16, when Andrea starts from the beverage producer C&C Group. In the meantime, Richard Snow acts as acting financial officer.