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The boss of Domino's Pizza Group who proposed the UK might have hit maximum pizza demand while broadening the chain into chicken products has been replaced after conflicts with its directors.

Executive Shake-Up

Andrew Rennie is departing after just two years in charge, and will be succeeded on an acting basis by the company's operations head, Nicola Frampton, while Domino's searches for a permanent CEO.

The outgoing executive, who served at Domino's for over 20 years, had aimed to pivot Britain's biggest pizza delivery company towards fried chicken, commenting earlier this month there was not “huge potential” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He said chicken was the quickest rising food category in the globe.

Board Tensions

It is understood that there was disagreement between Rennie and the directors over his strategy and business vision, although Domino's announcement said he was departing “as a joint decision”.

New Brand Launch

In the autumn, Domino's unveiled its chicken-focused offering – which Rennie referred to as a “bold new chapter” for the organization – and is trialling it in over 200 locations in the North West region and Northern Ireland.

While the business is still going to roll it out across its almost 1,400 stores in the coming year as scheduled, it considers chicken products as a supplement for its core pizza business.

Leadership Statement

Bull, the company chair, commented: “Directors think that there are a range of possibilities to drive further growth and profitability in the main pizza segment. We are concentrating on identifying the ideal CEO to lead the systematic rollout of that development approach.”

Market Challenges

Recently, the pizza delivery giant, which has a substantial customer base in the UK and Ireland, said transactions fell by 1.5 percent in the latest quarter. In August, it warned that the takeaway market had “become tougher” as it attributed reduced spending in the lead-up to the budget and increasing labor expenses for below-target performance and a 15% drop in half-year profits.

Competitors are also facing challenges. Pizza Hut disclosed the closure of multiple locations a last month, after the company behind its UK venues fell into administration.

Health Efforts

Responding to market shifts towards healthier eating, Domino's has introduced lower-calorie options, such as its light base selection of pizzas below 400 kcal as well as plant-based and gluten-free pizzas. A big pepperoni bake has over 2,300 kcal. A large cheese and tomato pizza has over 2,100, while a individual has 909 kcal.

Acting Leadership

Frampton has been with the company since 2021, and was formerly with the gaming group William Hill. It is thought that she does not want to occupy the top job long-term.

She said: “The company has a multiple active growth and operational projects that we will be concentrating on implementing at pace.”

She said these involved ongoing development on the organization's logistics network and product development, and its rewards program.

Domino's is also lacking a permanent CFO until March 16, when Andrea starts from the beverage producer C&C Group. For now, Richard Snow acts as temporary CFO.