Struggling Domino’s taps McDonald’s executive for top job following Mark van Dyck’s abrupt exit

Struggling pizza giant Domino’s has tapped former McDonald’s Australia and New Zealand boss Andrew Gregory to take on the top job after Mark van Dyck’s abrupt exit.

Mr Gregory’s appointment on Wednesday comes amid a period of turmoil for Domino’s, currently being led by its billionaire chair Jack Cowin following Mr van Dyck’s resignation last July after less than a year in the role.

Domino’s said Mr Gregory had more than 30 years of quick service restaurant experience, starting his career at McDonald’s in 1993 as a crew member while studying economics.

He most recently served as McDonald’s senior vice-president, global franchising in the US, focusing on development and growth across 45,000 restaurants.

Prior to this, Mr Gregory was chief executive of McDonald’s in Australia and New Zealand for eight years from 2014.

“Following a period of transition, the board is pleased to appoint a global CEO with deep QSR experience and a strong understanding of franchised business models,” Mr Cowin said on Wednesday.

“Andrew is a highly regarded operator and leader, and we are confident he is well placed to lead Domino’s through our next phase of performance improvement and growth.”

Mr Cowin — Domino’s biggest shareholder with nearly a 26 per cent stake and also the founder of Hungry Jack’s — will continue to serve as Domino’s executive chair, working with Mr Gregory to ensure an orderly handover.

The news sent Domino’s shares up 2.9 per cent to $23 at the close.

Mr Gregory will take up his role with Domino’s no later than August 5. He will be paid $1.45 million a year, plus short and long-term incentives.

The pizza giant — which operates 3529 stores across Australia, New Zealand, Europe and Asia — said Mr Gregory’s appointment was intended to support Domino’s ongoing focus on improving franchisee profitability, strengthening customer value propositions and delivering sustainable shareholder returns across its global network.

Domino’s went from delivering a $96m profit in 2024 to a $3.7m loss in the 2025 financial year, marking Domino’s first loss since listing on the Australian Securities Exchange more than 20 years ago.

Last August, Mr Cowin revealed Domino’s would dump its heavy discounting and vouchers to focus on delivering an “everyday low price” model — similar to Bunnings’ strategy where it does not run regular promotions and instead offers consistent, competitive pricing — in a bid to revive sales.

Mr Cowin told The West at the time many of its customers had been trained to only buy a pizza when they had a discount voucher. “That complicates the business, it complicates the ordering process and . . . giving away money like that also impacts on franchisee profitability,” he said.