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A head of Domino's Pizza Group who proposed the United Kingdom might have reached pizza saturation while diversifying the chain into poultry items has been ousted after tensions with its directors.

Executive Shake-Up

The former CEO is departing after only 24 months in the top role, and will be replaced on an temporary basis by the company's chief operating officer, Frampton, while the pizza giant seeks a long-term chief.

Rennie, who served at Domino's for a substantial period, had sought to shift the UK's leading pizza food delivery firm towards fried chicken, stating in a recent interview there was not “huge potential” left in the pizza sector in the UK. He noted chicken was the quickest rising protein in the international market.

Board Tensions

Sources suggest that there was tension between the CEO and the governance team over his strategy and business vision, although the company's announcement said he was departing “as a joint decision”.

Recent Brand Launch

In the autumn, Domino's unveiled its chicken-focused brand – which the former chief called a “major strategic shift” for the group – and is testing it in select stores in the North West region and Northern Ireland.

While the business is still planning to expand it across its almost 1,400 stores in the coming year as planned, it views chicken products as an addition to its main pizza offerings.

Board Comment

Bull, the Domino's chairman, stated: “Directors think that there are a range of possibilities to drive further growth and performance improvement in our primary operations. We are focused on selecting the suitable leader to oversee the disciplined execution of that expansion plan.”

Market Difficulties

Earlier this month, Domino's, which has millions of users in the British Isles, said sales fell by one and a half percent in the third quarter. In the summer, it warned that the quick-service industry had “become tougher” as it attributed economic uncertainty in the period before the government announcement and increasing labor expenses for disappointing revenue and a 15 percent decline in interim earnings.

Rival chains are also struggling. Pizza Hut disclosed the closing of 68 restaurants a recently, after the business behind its UK venues entered insolvency.

Health Efforts

Adapting to customer preferences towards balanced diets, the company has introduced lower-calorie options, such as its Thin & Crispy line of bakes below 400 calories as well as meat-free and wheat-free pizzas. A family-sized pepperoni has over 2,300 kcal. A large cheese and tomato pizza has 2,171, while a personal has 909 kcal.

Interim Management

Nicola Frampton has been with the company since the recent past, and had a background at the gambling company a well-known operator. It is believed that she does not want to occupy the CEO position permanently.

She commented: “The company has a number of current development and efficiency programs that we will be dedicated to implementing at pace.”

She said these comprised additional efforts on the organization's procurement system and product development, and its loyalty scheme.

Domino's is also without a long-term CFO until the spring, when Andy Andrea joins from the Irish cider and beer maker a well-known firm. Until then, Richard Snow is acting financial officer.