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The boss of Domino's Pizza Group who suggested the United Kingdom might have reached pizza saturation while expanding the company into fried chicken has been removed after conflicts with its governing body.

Leadership Shake-Up

Andrew Rennie is leaving after just two years in charge, and will be replaced on an temporary basis by the company's chief operating officer, Nicola Frampton, while Domino's looks for a long-term chief.

The outgoing executive, who was with the company for over 20 years, had sought to pivot the UK's leading pizza takeaway chain towards fried chicken, commenting in a recent interview there was not “huge potential” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He observed poultry was the fastest-growing menu item in the world.

Governance Disagreements

It is understood that there was tension between Rennie and the governance team over his focus and business vision, although Domino's announcement said he was leaving “as a joint decision”.

Recent Brand Launch

In September, the chain unveiled its chicken-focused offering – which the former chief described as a “major strategic shift” for the company – and is testing it in select stores in the north-west of England and Northern Ireland.

While the company is still planning to expand it across its almost 1,400 stores next year as planned, it considers chicken products as a supplement for its core pizza business.

Leadership Comment

Ian Bull, the Domino's chair, stated: “Directors think that there are a series of prospects to enhance value and value creation in Domino's core business. We are focused on finding the suitable leader to lead the disciplined execution of that development approach.”

Industry Difficulties

Recently, Domino's, which has millions of users in the UK and Ireland, said sales declined by 1.5% in the latest quarter. In the summer, it cautioned that the quick-service industry had “become tougher” as it attributed weaker consumer confidence in the lead-up to the government announcement and higher payroll outlays for below-target performance and a significant fall in interim earnings.

Rival chains are also struggling. Another major chain revealed the closure of dozens of outlets a recently, after the business behind its outlets faced financial collapse.

Health Initiatives

Trying to keep up with customer preferences towards better nutrition, the company has rolled out lower-calorie items, such as its thin-crust selection of pizzas below 400 calories as well as plant-based and wheat-free pizzas. A big pepperoni bake has over 2,300 kcal. A big margherita has 2,171, while a personal has 909 kcal.

Interim Management

The interim chief has been with the company since 2021, and was formerly with the betting firm a well-known operator. It is believed that she does not want to assume the CEO position on a full-time basis.

She commented: “Our team has a multiple active development and performance initiatives that we will be focused on executing at a rapid rate.”

Frampton noted these included further work on the organization's logistics network and new item creation, and its customer retention initiative.

The pizza chain is also without a permanent finance director until March 16, when a new appointee comes aboard from the Irish cider and beer maker a well-known firm. For now, Snow is interim finance chief.