Domino’s gets a new CEO amid slowing sales—but is it enough to save pizza chains?

After Domino’s Pizza’s first-quarter sales fell far below projections, the world’s largest pizza chain named a new CEO with the hopes of turning things around for the better. In a Monday press release, the company named Joe Jordan, the current COO and president of Domino’s U.S., as CEO effective Oct. 1. Domino’s current CEO, Russell Weiner, will become executive chairman. Jordan has held various executive roles across marketing, innovation and other functions during his 15 years at Domino’s. Most recently, Jordan was recognized for leading the relaunch of Domino’s loyalty and e-commerce platforms, and the launch of its global digital marketplace partnerships. According to Reuters, a regulatory filing shows that Jordan’s annual base salary would be 925,000, with eligibility for a ​target annual bonus of 200 ​of his base pay. “Joe is a proven leader whose experience spans virtually every aspect of our business,” said Domino’s current executive chairman, David Brandon. “After a thoughtful succession planning process, the Board unanimously concluded that Joe is the right leader to serve as Domino’s next CEO.” “He embodies Domino’s culture of developing leaders from within, has earned the trust of franchisees across our global system and is uniquely qualified to guide the Company through its next phase of growth,” Brandon added. A December 2025 report from global leadership consulting firm Spencer Stuart showed that 60 of SP 500 companies hired C-suite leaders from within the organization, and 76 of CEOs and 80 of COOs were internal hires—a pattern seen at Domino’s, whose former CEO Weiner was also formerly COO. Jordan’s deep familiarity with the franchise’s consumer base could be what it needs to succeed—or perhaps Domino’s ultimately needs a more disruptive outside voice to reverse its slide. Joe Jordan (left), currently COO and President of Domino’s U.S., has been appointed CEO effective Oct. 1, 2026, succeeding Russell Weiner (right), who will retire as CEO and transition to Executive Chairman in 2027. Current Executive Chairman David A. Brandon (middle) will retire from the Board in 2027 after nearly three decades of service to the company. [Photo: Domino’s] With rising labor and ingredient costs and competition from delivery service apps like DoorDash, Domino’s competing legacy pizza chains have struggled, too. Papa Johns and Pizza Hut have both experienced quarter-over-quarter drops in U.S. sales. Last week, Pizza Hut was sold to private equity firm LongRange Capital and Yum China for 2.7 billion. Papa Johns also recently announced it would close nearly 300 underperforming locations through the end of 2027. Even fast-casual and dine-in pizza chains have seen a dip in sales and shuttered locations due to a heavily over-saturated market. (No word yet on if this will have any effect on Domino’s beloved order tracker.)