Domino’s appoints permanent boss as it sharpens focus on core pizza business

Domino’s Pizza has announced the appointment of Nicola Frampton as its permanent boss, as it hopes to refocus efforts on its core pizza business while also tapping into the market for chicken.

Ms Frampton is currently the delivery chain’s interim chief executive but the appointment means she will take the top job on a permanent basis.

She stepped up to the role in November following the abrupt exit of previous chief Andrew Rennie, who had led the company for about two years.

His departure came after he indicated that the UK pizza market is nearing saturation point, telling the Financial Times there is no “massive growth” left in this category.

Domino’s recently launched the Chick ‘N’ Dip sub-brand to tap into rapidly growing demand for chicken in the UK, which has now been rolled out nationwide.

Mr Rennie had also previously suggested that Domino’s was looking to acquire a second food brand to boost its expansion.

But Ms Frampton said earlier this month that the idea had been “parked”, as trialling Chick ‘N’ Dip “made us realise that we didn’t need to go and buy a hundred million pound brand in order to be successfully accessing the growing chicken market”.

Ms Frampton was the chief operating officer for the company for around four years, and previously managed the UK retail business for betting shop William Hill.

Ian Bull, the chairman of Domino’s, said: “Nicola has led Domino’s extremely effectively as interim chief executive officer, bringing a clear strategic focus and creating strong alignment and positive momentum across our core business.

“The board is confident that under Nicola’s leadership, Domino’s is well-placed to execute on our strategy to grow the core business and drive shareholder returns.”

Ms Frampton previously said 2025 had been a “difficult year for all”, with weaker consumer spending driving a dip in order numbers, while many of its franchisees put up their prices during the year.

Domino’s nonetheless said 2026 had got off to a good start and it was hoping for a sales boost from Chick ‘N’ Dip while aiming to open a swathe of new shops.

Domino’s shares were up by about 3% on Tuesday morning.