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A head of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who indicated the UK might have hit pizza saturation while expanding the franchise into poultry items has been removed after tensions with its governing body.

Leadership Change

The former CEO is leaving after just two years in the top role, and will be replaced on an acting basis by the organization's operations head, Frampton, while Domino's searches for a permanent CEO.

Rennie, who was with the company for over 20 years, had attempted to shift Britain's leading pizza takeaway chain towards poultry-based products, remarking earlier this month there was not “massive growth” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He said poultry was the most rapidly expanding food category in the world.

Board Tensions

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

Recent Brand Launch

In September, the chain introduced its poultry product line – which Rennie referred to as a “major strategic shift” for the company – and is piloting it in select stores in the North West region and Northern Ireland.

While the business is still going to roll it out across its almost 1,400 stores in 2026 as scheduled, it views fried chicken as complementary to its main pizza offerings.

Leadership Statement

The Domino's chair, the company chair, said: “Directors think that there are a series of prospects to drive further growth and profitability in our primary operations. We are concentrating on selecting the ideal CEO to direct the careful implementation of that growth strategy.”

Industry Difficulties

Recently, the pizza delivery giant, which has millions of users in the UK and Ireland, said sales declined by one and a half percent in the third quarter. In the summer, it cautioned 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 weaker-than-expected sales and a 15 percent decline in half-year profits.

Other pizza operators are also struggling. Another major chain disclosed the shutting of multiple locations a recently, after the firm behind its UK venues entered insolvency.

Wellness Efforts

Trying to keep up with market shifts towards healthier eating, the company has introduced reduced-calorie products, such as its light base range of pizzas below 400 kcal as well as vegan and allergy-friendly pizzas. A family-sized pepperoni has 2,311 calories. A big margherita has 2,171 kcal, while a personal has under 1,000 calories.

Acting Management

Frampton has been with the company since the recent past, and had a background at the gambling company a well-known operator. It is thought that she prefers not to occupy the CEO position on a full-time basis.

She said: “We have a number of ongoing expansion and performance initiatives that we will be focused on carrying out at speed.”

She added these included additional efforts on the company's supply chain and new item creation, and its loyalty scheme.

Domino's is also lacking a permanent chief financial officer until 16 March, when Andy Andrea joins from the beverage producer C&C Group. In the meantime, Snow serves as interim finance chief.