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The chief executive of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who suggested the United Kingdom might have reached pizza saturation while diversifying the franchise into poultry items has been ousted after tensions with its governing body.

Executive Shake-Up

Rennie is departing after just two years in the top role, and will be replaced on an acting basis by the company's operations head, Frampton, while Domino's seeks a long-term chief.

The outgoing executive, who worked for Domino's for over 20 years, had attempted to redirect the UK's biggest pizza takeaway chain towards fried chicken, remarking in a recent interview there was not “massive growth” left in the British pizza industry. He observed poultry was the quickest rising food category in the globe.

Governance Tensions

Sources suggest that there was tension between the CEO and the governance team over his focus and business vision, although Domino's release said he was leaving “by mutual agreement”.

New Brand Launch

In the autumn, Domino's unveiled its Chick 'N' Dip brand – which the former chief referred to as a “bold new chapter” for the company – and is trialling it in 210 outlets in the North West region and Northern Ireland.

While the company is still planning to expand it across its extensive network in the coming year as scheduled, it views fried chicken as a supplement for its primary pizza operations.

Board Comment

Bull, the Domino's chair, stated: “The board believes that there are a series of prospects to enhance value and value creation in our primary operations. We are concentrating on selecting the suitable leader to oversee the disciplined execution of that growth strategy.”

Market Difficulties

In the latest update, the pizza delivery giant, which has 13 million customers in the British Isles, said sales dipped by 1.5 percent in the latest quarter. In the summer, it alerted that the food delivery sector had “intensified” as it blamed reduced spending in the period before the budget and increasing labor expenses for below-target performance and a 15 percent decline in six-month income.

Other pizza operators are also struggling. Another major chain disclosed the shutting of 68 restaurants a recently, after the company behind its outlets faced financial collapse.

Health Efforts

Responding to customer preferences towards better nutrition, Domino's has launched light products, such as its thin-crust selection of bakes below 400 calories as well as vegan and allergy-friendly options. A family-sized pepperoni has 2,311 calories. A big margherita has 2,171 kcal, while a personal has under 1,000 calories.

Interim Leadership

The interim chief has been with Domino's since 2021, and had a background at the gaming group William Hill. It is believed that she is not seeking to occupy the top job on a full-time basis.

She commented: “We have a number of current expansion and operational projects that we will be concentrating on executing at a rapid rate.”

Frampton noted these included additional efforts on the organization's logistics network and menu innovation, and its customer retention initiative.

Domino's is also without a long-term CFO until March 16, when Andy Andrea comes aboard from the Irish cider and beer maker C&C Group. For now, Richard Snow serves as interim finance chief.