New Domino’s boss Kerri Hayman attributes success Down Under to $3 pizza dog

The freshly-minted boss of Domino’s Australia and New Zealand has attributed the success of the business to a $3 pizza dog — among other new menu innovations — despite other takeaway giants reporting waning appetite for fast food.

While a Domino’s pizza has predominantly been seen as a dinner option, Kerri Hayman told The West Australian it has rapidly pushed into the lunchtime segment with “handheld” products making it easier for customers to eat on the go.

The pizza giant claimed it was the fastest growing chain for lunch trade in the 2024 financial year.

Ms Hayman attributed this growth to the launch of over 60 new menu items over the period — including the pizza dog, made with a Kransky-style sausage, drizzled with tomato sauce and baked in dough.

“Creating new moments that customers eat with us has really been what’s grown our business,” Ms Hayman said during a trip to Perth this week.

“Customers have said we want more, and so we’re definitely giving that.

“Lunchtime has been great for us . . . but then also offering a late-night snack, an afternoon snack. That’s all different occasions where we’re grabbing new customers.”

Ms Hayman was previously the chief operating officer of Domino’s Australia and New Zealand before being parachuted into the top job less than a month ago.

She’s ready to hit the ground running with three top priorities: people, franchise profitability and “an absolute obsession with product”.

“For the last year, we’ve been doing some things really, really well and our customers have really rewarded us by buying more,” Ms Hayman said.

“We want to keep building on that and so coming into the role, I want to keep doing what we’ve been doing but kind of accelerate it a little bit more.”

Ms Hayman cut her teeth at the pizza chain in Redcliffe, Queensland as a 15-year-old working alongside her elder brother, Don Meij — now the group chief executive of Domino’s.

Her near-40-year tenure with Domino’s included stints as operations manager for the UK-listed Domino’s and as an award-winning 14-store franchisee in the US.

“I’ve been very fortunate to have an amazing career and work my way through all the roles and work internationally as well,” Ms Hayman said.

“But my story is really not unique in the Domino’s space . . . my story is something that gets duplicated over and over in this business.

“We have 27,000 team members across Australia and you never know, one of those applying for a job today could be the CEO like me 30 years from now.”

The Australia and New Zealand division was the best performer for Domino’s in fiscal 2024 — reporting a 10 per cent lift in underlying earnings to $124.1 million across 898 stores.

My Hayman plans to keep that momentum going by “delivering amazing product and having our team members obsessed” with its pizza and sides range.

As other takeaway giants such as KFC and McDonald’s reveal declining sales as customers lose appetite for fast food amid cost-of-living pressures, Ms Hayman wants Domino’s to remain good value.

“Customers . . . know what they want and so they can’t be fooled into paying more and receiving less, they will leave you as a brand,” she said.

Domino’s endured a challenging year in 2023 as it was forced to make 200 staff redundant globally as part of a cost-cutting program.

Mr Meij early last year also conceded Domino’s failed to get the balance right when it lifted delivery prices to combat inflation and led to a sharp drop in profits.

The pizza giant is now planning a turnaround for its troubled international markets, France and Japan, as it faces an investor class action over its Japan stores.

In July this year, the pizza maker announced would close up to 110 “loss-making” stores across Japan and France in a bid to cut costs. Ms Hayman would not be drawn to commenting on the performance of other regions.