Following a Sunday Times article that claimed discussions between Domino’s Pizza (DOM) and its franchisees were further from being resolved than investors had been led to believe, the company issued a stock exchange announcement to say it “strongly refutes the reported allegations”.
Some franchisees feel Domino’s is not taking enough of the strain of rising costs and want to get a better deal. This has created uncertainty about the number of new stores that will be opened this year as well as the group’s longer-term target to increase UK store numbers form about 1,100 to 1,600.
New openings increasingly involve splitting sales territories which can come at a cost to existing stores. Domino’s has been offering financial support to encourage new openings and help to franchisees, which last year cost £3.4m.