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The chief executive of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who indicated the UK might have reached pizza saturation while broadening the chain into poultry items has been replaced after disagreements with its governing body.

Executive Change

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

Rennie, who served at the company for more than two decades, had attempted to redirect the UK's leading pizza food delivery firm towards chicken offerings, commenting earlier this month there was not “significant expansion” left in the UK's pizza market. He observed poultry was the fastest-growing protein in the international market.

Board Friction

Sources suggest that there was friction between Rennie and the governance team over his approach and business vision, although Domino's release said he was departing “by mutual agreement”.

Recent Product Introduction

In the autumn, Domino's unveiled its Chick 'N' Dip brand – which Rennie referred to as a “significant new phase” for the group – and is piloting it in over 200 locations in the North West region and Northern Ireland.

While the firm is still going to roll it out across its nearly 1,400 branches in 2026 as planned, it considers chicken products as a supplement for its main pizza offerings.

Board Statement

The Domino's chair, the company chair, stated: “Directors think that there are a series of prospects to drive further growth and performance improvement in the main pizza segment. We are focused on finding the right chief executive to direct the systematic rollout of that development approach.”

Market Challenges

Recently, Domino's, which has a substantial customer base in the UK and Ireland, said sales dipped by one and a half percent in the Q3. In the summer, it warned that the takeaway market had “grown more challenging” as it blamed economic uncertainty in the lead-up to the budget and rising wage costs for below-target performance and a 15% drop in half-year profits.

Competitors are also facing challenges. Pizza Hut revealed the shutting of 68 restaurants a month ago, after the company behind its outlets faced financial collapse.

Health Efforts

Trying to keep up with market shifts towards healthier eating, Domino's has launched reduced-calorie products, such as its Thin & Crispy line of pizzas below 400 calories as well as meat-free and allergy-friendly options. A big pepperoni bake has 2,311 calories. A family cheese pizza has 2,171, while a personal has under 1,000 calories.

Acting Management

Frampton has been with the company since 2021, and had a background at the gambling company William Hill. It is thought that she is not seeking to take on the CEO position permanently.

She said: “We have a multiple active development and operational projects that we will be dedicated to implementing at speed.”

She added these included additional efforts on the organization's procurement system and product development, and its rewards program.

The pizza chain is also without a permanent CFO until March 16, when Andrea joins from the drinks company C&C Group. In the meantime, Snow acts as acting financial officer.