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The head of the UK's Domino's Pizza chain who proposed the United Kingdom might have hit pizza saturation while broadening the franchise into poultry items has been removed after disagreements with its board.

Executive Transition

The former CEO is departing after a brief tenure in charge, and will be succeeded on an interim basis by the company's chief operating officer, Frampton, while the pizza giant searches for a long-term chief.

The outgoing executive, who worked for Domino's for more than two decades, had attempted to pivot the UK's largest pizza takeaway chain towards poultry-based products, stating recently there was not “significant expansion” left in the British pizza industry. He noted poultry was the fastest-growing food category in the globe.

Governance Tensions

It is understood that there was tension between the CEO and the directors over his strategy and direction, although Domino's official statement said he was departing “as a joint decision”.

New Product Introduction

In the autumn, the chain unveiled its poultry offering – which the former chief described as a “significant new phase” for the group – and is trialling it in select stores in the north-west of England and Northern Ireland.

While the business is still going to roll it out across its almost 1,400 stores in 2026 as scheduled, it regards fried chicken as a supplement for its core pizza business.

Board Statement

Ian Bull, the Domino's chairman, commented: “We are confident that there are a range of possibilities to boost expansion and profitability in Domino's core business. We are prioritizing selecting the ideal CEO to direct the systematic rollout of that development approach.”

Market Difficulties

Recently, Domino's, which has a substantial customer base in the British Isles, said sales dipped by one and a half percent in the Q3. In August, it cautioned that the quick-service industry had “intensified” as it blamed economic uncertainty in the period before the budget and increasing labor expenses for weaker-than-expected sales and a 15% drop in six-month income.

Rival chains are also facing challenges. Pizza Hut announced the shutting of dozens of outlets a month ago, after the business behind its British operations faced financial collapse.

Health Efforts

Adapting to customer preferences towards better nutrition, Domino's has launched light products, such as its thin-crust range of bakes below 400 kcals as well as meat-free and gluten-free options. A big pepperoni bake has 2,311 calories. A family cheese pizza has 2,171, while a small has 909 kcal.

Interim Management

The interim chief has been with Domino's since the recent past, and previously worked for the gambling company William Hill. It is understood that she is not seeking to assume the chief executive role on a full-time basis.

She said: “We have a number of ongoing development and performance initiatives that we will be concentrating on carrying out at pace.”

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

The pizza chain is also without a long-term chief financial officer until the spring, when a new appointee comes aboard from the beverage producer C&C Group. Until then, Snow is temporary CFO.