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The head of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who suggested the United Kingdom might have hit peak pizza while expanding the franchise into chicken products has been removed after tensions with its board.

Executive Change

The former CEO is exiting after only 24 months in the top role, and will be succeeded on an interim basis by the company's operations head, Frampton, while Domino's seeks a permanent CEO.

Rennie, who served at the company for over 20 years, had aimed to redirect the UK's biggest pizza takeaway chain towards chicken offerings, commenting recently there was not “huge potential” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He observed chicken was the quickest rising protein in the globe.

Governance Friction

Sources suggest that there was friction between Rennie and the board over his strategy and direction, although the company's official statement said he was leaving “through mutual consent”.

Recent Product Introduction

In the autumn, Domino's unveiled its Chick 'N' Dip product line – which the former chief called a “major strategic shift” for the company – and is piloting it in over 200 locations in the north-west of England and Northern Ireland.

While the business is still going to roll it out across its nearly 1,400 branches in 2026 as planned, it views chicken products as complementary to its primary pizza operations.

Board Statement

Bull, the company chair, stated: “The board believes that there are a series of prospects to drive further growth and value creation in the main pizza segment. We are concentrating on finding the ideal CEO to lead the disciplined execution of that expansion plan.”

Market Challenges

In the latest update, the pizza delivery giant, which has a substantial customer base in the UK and Ireland, said transactions declined by one and a half percent in the latest quarter. In the summer, it alerted that the quick-service industry had “intensified” as it blamed economic uncertainty in the run-up to the government announcement and increasing labor expenses for below-target performance and a significant fall in six-month income.

Competitors are also facing challenges. Another major chain revealed the shutting of multiple locations a recently, after the business behind its UK venues entered insolvency.

Health Initiatives

Adapting to market shifts towards better nutrition, the company has introduced light items, such as its light base line of pizzas below 400 kcal as well as meat-free and allergy-friendly options. A big pepperoni bake has 2,311 calories. A large cheese and tomato pizza has over 2,100, while a individual has 909 calories.

Interim Leadership

Frampton has been with Domino's since 2021, and previously worked for the betting firm William Hill. It is understood that she does not want to occupy the chief executive role long-term.

She said: “We have a multiple current development and performance initiatives that we will be dedicated to executing at speed.”

Frampton noted these included ongoing development on the company's procurement system and menu innovation, and its customer retention initiative.

Domino's is also without a full-time CFO until March 16, when a new appointee starts from the drinks company a well-known firm. Until then, Richard Snow is temporary CFO.