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The chief executive of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who suggested the United Kingdom might have hit peak pizza while expanding the chain into poultry items has been ousted after disagreements with its governing body.

Executive Shake-Up

Andrew Rennie is exiting after a brief tenure in the top role, and will be succeeded on an acting basis by the organization's operations head, Nicola Frampton, while Domino's looks for a permanent CEO.

The outgoing executive, who worked for Domino's for over 20 years, had aimed to redirect the UK's largest pizza takeaway chain towards poultry-based products, stating recently there was not “massive growth” left in the British pizza industry. He observed poultry was the fastest-growing protein in the international market.

Board Tensions

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

Recent Brand Introduction

In the autumn, Domino's launched its Chick 'N' Dip product line – which the former chief described as a “significant new phase” for the organization – and is trialling it in over 200 locations in the north-west of England and Northern Ireland.

While the firm is still going to roll it out across its extensive network in the coming year as scheduled, it views fried chicken as a supplement for its main pizza offerings.

Board Comment

Bull, the company chairman, stated: “Directors think that there are a range of possibilities to boost expansion and profitability in the main pizza segment. We are concentrating on selecting the suitable leader to direct the systematic rollout of that expansion plan.”

Industry Challenges

Earlier this month, Domino's, which has 13 million customers in the UK and Ireland, said orders dipped by 1.5% in the Q3. In August, it alerted that the takeaway market had “become tougher” as it blamed reduced spending in the run-up to the government announcement and rising wage costs for below-target performance and a significant fall in interim earnings.

Other pizza operators are also experiencing difficulties. Pizza Hut announced the closing of multiple locations a recently, after the company behind its outlets faced financial collapse.

Wellness Efforts

Responding to customer preferences towards healthier eating, Domino's has rolled out reduced-calorie items, such as its thin-crust range of pizzas below 400 kcals as well as plant-based and allergy-friendly pizzas. A family-sized pepperoni has 2,311 kcals. A big margherita has 2,171, while a personal has under 1,000 calories.

Acting Management

Nicola Frampton has been with Domino's since the recent past, and was formerly with the gambling company William Hill. It is believed that she prefers not to assume the top job long-term.

She said: “Our team has a multiple active expansion and operational projects that we will be concentrating on implementing at a rapid rate.”

She added these involved ongoing development on the company's supply chain and menu innovation, and its customer retention initiative.

The pizza chain is also without a full-time CFO until March 16, when Andy Andrea joins from the Irish cider and beer maker a well-known firm. In the meantime, Richard Snow serves as interim finance chief.