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

Executive Shake-Up

Rennie is departing after only 24 months in leadership, and will be succeeded on an temporary basis by the organization's chief operating officer, Nicola Frampton, while the pizza giant searches for a new leader.

Rennie, who worked for the company for more than two decades, had attempted to pivot Britain's biggest pizza takeaway chain towards poultry-based products, commenting recently there was not “huge potential” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He noted poultry was the fastest-growing protein in the international market.

Governance Friction

It is understood that there was disagreement between the CEO and the governance team over his approach and business vision, although Domino's announcement said he was leaving “through mutual consent”.

New Product Launch

In the autumn, the chain unveiled its chicken-focused product line – which Rennie described as a “bold new chapter” for the organization – and is testing it in 210 outlets in the North West region and Northern Ireland.

While the company is still going to roll it out across its almost 1,400 stores next year as scheduled, it regards fried chicken as an addition to its main pizza offerings.

Leadership Comment

Bull, the company chair, said: “The board believes that there are a range of possibilities to boost expansion and profitability in our primary operations. We are prioritizing finding the suitable leader to direct the careful implementation of that growth strategy.”

Market Challenges

Recently, Domino's, which has a substantial customer base in the UK and Ireland, said orders dipped by 1.5 percent in the latest quarter. In August, it warned that the takeaway market had “become tougher” as it attributed weaker consumer confidence in the lead-up to the budget and higher payroll outlays for disappointing revenue and a significant fall in six-month income.

Rival chains are also experiencing difficulties. Another major chain revealed the closing of multiple locations a last month, after the firm behind its UK venues fell into administration.

Health Efforts

Adapting to market shifts towards healthier eating, Domino's has introduced lower-calorie options, such as its light base selection of bakes below 400 calories as well as meat-free and gluten-free pizzas. A big pepperoni bake has over 2,300 kcal. A big margherita has 2,171, while a small has 909 kcal.

Acting Leadership

Frampton has been with the company since the recent past, and previously worked for the gambling company a well-known operator. It is believed that she prefers not to occupy the chief executive role permanently.

Frampton stated: “Our team has a several active development and operational projects that we will be focused on implementing at speed.”

Frampton noted these comprised additional efforts on the company's procurement system and menu innovation, and its customer retention initiative.

Domino's is also lacking a long-term chief financial officer until the spring, when Andy Andrea starts from the Irish cider and beer maker a well-known firm. In the meantime, Richard Snow acts as acting financial officer.