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The chief executive of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who indicated the United Kingdom might have reached pizza saturation while diversifying the franchise into chicken products has been replaced after tensions with its governing body.

Executive Shake-Up

Rennie is leaving after just two years in the top role, and will be succeeded on an temporary basis by the company's operations head, Frampton, while Domino's searches for a permanent CEO.

The outgoing executive, who served at Domino's for more than two decades, had sought to redirect the UK's leading pizza takeaway chain towards chicken offerings, stating earlier this month there was not “massive growth” left in the UK's pizza market. He observed chicken was the fastest-growing menu item in the international market.

Governance Tensions

Reports indicate that there was friction between Rennie and the governance team over his focus and business vision, although Domino's release said he was departing “by mutual agreement”.

Recent Brand Launch

In the autumn, Domino's launched its chicken-focused brand – which Rennie described as a “bold new chapter” for the company – and is trialling it in select stores in the north-west of England and the province.

While the company is still planning to expand it across its nearly 1,400 branches next year as intended, it considers fried chicken as a supplement for its primary pizza operations.

Board Statement

The Domino's chair, the Domino's chairman, said: “The board believes that there are a series of prospects to boost expansion and performance improvement in Domino's core business. We are prioritizing finding the right chief executive to direct the systematic rollout of that development approach.”

Market Difficulties

Earlier this month, Domino's, which has millions of users in the British Isles, said transactions declined by one and a half percent in the latest quarter. In the summer, it warned that the takeaway market had “intensified” as it attributed weaker consumer confidence in the run-up to the budget and rising wage costs for disappointing revenue and a 15% drop in interim earnings.

Other pizza operators are also experiencing difficulties. Pizza Hut revealed the shutting of multiple locations a recently, after the company behind its outlets entered insolvency.

Health Efforts

Responding to consumer trends towards better nutrition, the company has rolled out lower-calorie products, such as its Thin & Crispy range of bakes below 400 kcals as well as meat-free and gluten-free options. A big pepperoni bake has 2,311 calories. A large cheese and tomato pizza has over 2,100, while a individual has 909 kcal.

Interim Management

Frampton has been with the company since the recent past, and had a background at the gaming group a well-known operator. It is thought that she is not seeking to assume the top job permanently.

She said: “We have a several ongoing expansion and operational projects that we will be dedicated to carrying out at speed.”

Frampton noted these included further work on the organization's procurement system and new item creation, and its loyalty scheme.

The pizza chain is also in need of a permanent finance director until the spring, when a new appointee joins from the beverage producer a well-known firm. In the meantime, Snow serves as temporary CFO.