Domino’s Pizza CEO Don Meij to retire after 22 years at the top

The man credited with building Domino’s into Australia’s biggest pizza chain — and spreading the brand’s reach into Asia and key markets in Europe — is retiring after more than two decades at the top.

Don Meij revealed on Tuesday that he would leave his near 40-year career with Domino’s Pizza Enterprises and hand over the reins to Mark van Dyck, who has been an adviser to the company’s board for the past year.

Mr Meij will continue to work with the board for the next 12 months.

He said the decision to retire was not easy but it was the right time to make way for new leadership.

“It has been an incredible honour to be part of this company for the past 37 years and especially the past 22 years as CEO,” he said.

“Domino’s really has been my life. When I started as a delivery driver in Redcliffe, Queensland, I never imagined I’d become CEO of a truly global company with more than $4 billion in sales.

“I’ve had the privilege of working with extraordinary teams, franchise partners and customers. Many of the incredible people I have worked with have gone from team members to franchise partners or executives around the world.

“I leave knowing that the business is well-positioned for an exciting new chapter.”

Domino’s Pizza Enterprises is Australia’s biggest pizza chain in terms of both network store numbers and network sales. It is also the largest franchisee for the Domino’s Pizza brand in the world.

It holds the exclusive master franchise rights for the Domino’s brand and network in Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Japan, Germany, Luxembourg, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia.

The company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 2005 with 387 stores and sales of $300 million. It now operates more than 3700 stores with sales of more than $4 billion.

Mr Meij’s sister, Kerri Hayman was appointed as the Australian and New Zealand CEO in August after almost four decades with the company.

Domino’s chair Jack Cowin paid tribute to Mr Meij’s “exceptional leadership and achievements”.

“Under his leadership Domino’s Pizza Enterprises grew from a Brisbane-based company to a truly global business — the market-leader in each of the markets the company has operated for more than three years in Europe and the Asia-Pacific,” Mr Cowin said.

“Don has done an exceptional job of delivering positive outcomes for all our stakeholders, including franchise partners, shareholders and employees. He leaves an impressive legacy.”

Mr van Dyck was most recently regional managing director, Asia Pacific for UK food service multinational Compass Group, overseeing 66,000 employees in 11 countries with responsibility for serving more than 400 million meals a year. He will start on a base salary of $1.585 million, plus short and long-term bonuses.

The news came as Domino’s reported a lacklustre start to the new financial year.

Same-store sales in the first 17 weeks of FY25 were down 1.2 per cent.

German sales remain negative after record sales from the previous year, but have improved since the August trading update.

French and Japan sales remain negative year-to-date, with the company admitting more work is required in the markets to deliver positive sales.