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The head of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who proposed the United Kingdom might have hit maximum pizza demand while diversifying the chain into chicken products has been ousted after disagreements with its governing body.

Executive Transition

Rennie is leaving after a brief tenure in charge, and will be succeeded on an temporary basis by the organization's operations head, Nicola Frampton, while the pizza giant looks for a new leader.

The outgoing executive, who worked for the company for a substantial period, had sought to pivot Britain's leading pizza takeaway chain towards chicken offerings, stating recently there was not “massive growth” left in the UK's pizza market. He said poultry was the fastest-growing food category in the globe.

Board Tensions

Sources suggest that there was disagreement between Rennie and the board over his focus and direction, although the company's announcement said he was departing “through mutual consent”.

Recent Brand Launch

In the autumn, Domino's launched its Chick 'N' Dip product line – which Rennie called a “significant new phase” for the group – and is trialling it in over 200 locations in the north-west of England and Northern Ireland.

While the firm is still going to roll it out across its almost 1,400 stores next year as planned, it views chicken products as a supplement for its main pizza offerings.

Leadership Comment

Ian Bull, the company chair, commented: “Directors think that there are a number of opportunities to enhance value and value creation in our primary operations. We are prioritizing identifying the right chief executive to lead the systematic rollout of that expansion plan.”

Industry Difficulties

In the latest update, the pizza delivery giant, which has 13 million customers in the UK and Ireland, said sales dipped by one and a half percent in the latest quarter. In the summer, it alerted that the quick-service industry had “grown more challenging” as it blamed economic uncertainty in the run-up to the government announcement and rising wage costs for below-target performance and a significant fall in half-year profits.

Competitors are also experiencing difficulties. Pizza Hut revealed the shutting of multiple locations a recently, after the firm behind its UK venues entered insolvency.

Wellness Efforts

Responding to market shifts towards healthier eating, the company has introduced reduced-calorie options, such as its thin-crust selection of pizzas below 400 kcal as well as vegan and wheat-free pizzas. A large pepperoni pizza has 2,311 calories. A big margherita has over 2,100, while a small has 909 kcal.

Acting Leadership

Frampton has been with the company since 2021, and was formerly with the betting firm a well-known operator. It is believed that she is not seeking to take on the top job on a full-time basis.

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

She added these comprised additional efforts on the organization's procurement system and menu innovation, and its loyalty scheme.

Domino's is also lacking a full-time chief financial officer until the spring, when Andrea joins from the beverage producer C&C Group. For now, Richard Snow serves as acting financial officer.