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The head of Domino's Pizza Group who indicated the UK might have hit pizza saturation while expanding the franchise into poultry items has been removed after conflicts with its board.

Leadership Shake-Up

Rennie is leaving after just two years in charge, and will be succeeded on an acting basis by the company's operations head, Nicola Frampton, while Domino's searches for a new leader.

The outgoing executive, who was with Domino's for over 20 years, had attempted to shift Britain's largest pizza food delivery firm towards fried chicken, commenting recently there was not “significant expansion” left in the UK's pizza market. He noted poultry was the fastest-growing menu item in the world.

Board Friction

Reports indicate that there was disagreement between the CEO and the board over his approach and business vision, although Domino's release said he was leaving “as a joint decision”.

New Brand Introduction

In the autumn, Domino's unveiled its chicken-focused brand – which the former chief referred to as a “major strategic shift” for the group – and is piloting it in select stores in the north-west of England and the province.

While the business is still going to roll it out across its almost 1,400 stores in the coming year as planned, it considers fried chicken as an addition to its core pizza business.

Leadership Comment

The Domino's chair, the Domino's chair, said: “We are confident that there are a range of possibilities to boost expansion and profitability in the main pizza segment. We are focused on finding the suitable leader to lead the disciplined execution of that growth strategy.”

Market Difficulties

In the latest update, Domino's, which has millions of users in the UK and Ireland, said orders declined by 1.5 percent in the Q3. In the summer, it alerted that the food delivery sector had “become tougher” as it attributed reduced spending in the lead-up to the budget and higher payroll outlays for disappointing revenue and a 15 percent decline in six-month income.

Rival chains are also facing challenges. Pizza Hut announced the closure of 68 restaurants a last month, after the firm behind its outlets faced financial collapse.

Wellness Efforts

Trying to keep up with customer preferences towards better nutrition, the company has introduced reduced-calorie items, such as its light base line of bakes below 400 kcals as well as meat-free and gluten-free pizzas. A family-sized pepperoni has 2,311 kcals. A large cheese and tomato pizza has 2,171, while a personal has 909 calories.

Acting Management

Frampton has been with Domino's since the recent past, and was formerly with the betting firm a well-known operator. It is understood that she prefers not to assume the chief executive role permanently.

She said: “Our team has a several current growth and operational projects that we will be concentrating on carrying out at speed.”

Frampton noted these involved additional efforts on the company's logistics network and menu innovation, and its rewards program.

The pizza chain is also without a long-term chief financial officer until 16 March, when a new appointee comes aboard from the Irish cider and beer maker C&C Group. For now, Richard Snow is temporary CFO.