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A chief executive of Domino's Pizza Group who indicated the United Kingdom might have reached peak pizza while broadening the chain into fried chicken has been removed after conflicts with its governing body.

Executive Transition

The former CEO is exiting after a brief tenure in charge, and will be replaced on an temporary basis by the company's chief operating officer, Nicola Frampton, while Domino's seeks a permanent CEO.

Rennie, who was with the company for over 20 years, had sought to pivot the UK's biggest pizza delivery company towards fried chicken, remarking earlier this month there was not “massive growth” left in the British pizza industry. He noted chicken was the quickest rising food category in the globe.

Governance Friction

Sources suggest that there was tension between the CEO and the directors over his focus and business vision, although Domino's announcement said he was leaving “as a joint decision”.

New Product Introduction

In the autumn, the chain introduced its Chick 'N' Dip product line – which Rennie described as a “bold new chapter” for the group – and is trialling it in 210 outlets in the North West region and the province.

While the business is still intending to launch it across its nearly 1,400 branches next year as planned, it views fried chicken as complementary to its primary pizza operations.

Board Statement

Bull, the company chairman, commented: “Directors think that there are a range of possibilities to drive further growth and profitability in our primary operations. We are focused on finding the suitable leader to direct the disciplined execution of that expansion plan.”

Industry Difficulties

Recently, Domino's, which has 13 million customers in the UK and Ireland, said orders dipped by 1.5 percent in the third quarter. In August, it alerted that the food delivery sector had “grown more challenging” as it blamed reduced spending in the lead-up to the budget and rising wage costs for below-target performance and a significant fall in six-month income.

Competitors are also struggling. Another major chain announced the closing of 68 restaurants a last month, after the firm behind its British operations fell into administration.

Health Initiatives

Adapting to market shifts towards balanced diets, Domino's has launched light items, such as its light base line of pizzas below 400 calories as well as vegan and gluten-free options. A family-sized pepperoni has over 2,300 kcal. A big margherita has 2,171, while a small has 909 kcal.

Interim Leadership

Nicola Frampton has been with the company since the recent past, and was formerly with the betting firm William Hill. It is believed that she prefers not to take on the chief executive role on a full-time basis.

Frampton stated: “The company has a number of ongoing expansion and operational projects that we will be concentrating on implementing at a rapid rate.”

She said these involved further work on the company's supply chain and menu innovation, and its loyalty scheme.

The pizza chain is also without a full-time finance director until March 16, when a new appointee starts from the Irish cider and beer maker C&C Group. In the meantime, Snow is acting financial officer.