Dennis Hightower Nominated to Become Deputy Secretary of Commerce
ANN ARBOR, Mich., July 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Domino's Pizza, Inc.
(NYSE: DPZ), the recognized world leader in pizza delivery, announced that
Dennis F. Hightower has departed its Board in order to accept President
Obama's nomination for Deputy Secretary of Commerce. The post requires that
the nominee hold no other Board or management positions. Mr. Hightower served
on the Domino's Pizza Board of Directors since February 2003, serving on all
three of the Board Committees during his tenure. Most recently Mr. Hightower
was Chairman of the Audit Committee and a member of the Compensation
Committee. Ms. Diana F. Cantor, a Director of Domino's Pizza since October
2005, will replace Hightower as head of the Audit Committee. Ms. Cantor also
serves on the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
In his resignation letter to Chairman and CEO David Brandon, Hightower
said: "It has been both a privilege and a pleasure to have served the
shareholders of this outstanding company since February 2003. The executive
team that you have assembled over the years and that you have so ably led is
"First in Class" in my experience serving on eight other boards over the past
14 years. I wish you, the members of the Board of Directors, the Leadership
Team, and the many dedicated Domino's team members throughout the world all
the best for continued success."
David Brandon said: "Dennis has served our company with distinction and
will now be serving his country with the same passion and commitment. He has
once again answered an important call to public service. We thank him for his
many years of service to our shareholders and our company. We will miss him;
and wish him all the best."
He added: "We are very fortunate to have Diana Cantor to take over for
Dennis as the Chair of our Audit Committee. Her experience as a member of the
Board of Domino's Pizza, combined with her many other qualifications, make her
the perfect fit for this position. Our thanks go out Diana for accepting this
important role."
Over a 30-year career, Hightower has become a seasoned business executive
gaining broad respect from professionals across many industries - from the
entertainment industry; to management consulting and manufacturing; to higher
education. His global management experience spans the private and public
sectors, including experience in corporate oversight, global marketing,
strategic planning, operations and international general management. A leader
in corporate governance and accountability, Hightower has served on the Boards
of Directors of Accenture, the Gillette Company, Northwest Airlines, and
PanAmSat Corporation, among others, in addition to his serving on the Domino's
Pizza Board. Mr. Hightower holds an M.B.A. degree from the Harvard Business
School and a B.S. degree and honorary doctorate from Howard University.
If he is confirmed by the Senate, Hightower will take control of an office
that provides management oversight to the Department's twelve bureaus,
overseeing operations totaling more than $17 billion dollars.
Diana Cantor, C.P.A, replacing Hightower as Audit Committee Chair, is a
Managing Director of New York Private Bank and Trust, the wealth management
division of Emigrant Bank, and was the founding Executive Director of the
Virginia College Savings Plan, the state's 529 college savings program, from
1996 through 2007. Ms. Cantor served seven years as Vice President of Richmond
Resources, Ltd. from 1990 through 1996, and as Vice President of Goldman,
Sachs & Co. from 1985 to 1990.
Ms. Cantor holds a JD from the New York University School of Law and is a
member of the State Bar Associations of Virginia, New York and Florida. Cantor
also serves on the Board of Directors of Media General, Inc. Ms. Cantor
currently resides in Richmond, Virginia with her husband Rep. Eric I. Cantor,
and their three teenagers.
About Domino's Pizza
Founded in 1960, Domino's Pizza is the recognized world leader in pizza
delivery. Domino's is listed on the NYSE under the symbol "DPZ." Through its
primarily locally-owned and operated franchised system, Domino's operates a
network of 8,873 franchised and Company-owned stores in the United States and
60 international markets. The Domino's Pizza brand, named a Megabrand by
Advertising Age magazine, had global retail sales of over $5.5 billion in
2008, comprised of nearly $3.1 billion domestically and over $2.4 billion
internationally. During the second quarter of 2009, the Domino's Pizza brand
had global retail sales of over $1.2 billion, comprised of over $702 million
domestically and nearly $542 million internationally. Domino's Pizza was
named "Chain of the Year" by Pizza Today magazine, the leading publication of
the pizza industry. In 2009, Domino's ranked number one in customer
satisfaction in a survey of consumers of the U.S. largest limited service
restaurants, according to the annual American Customer Satisfaction Index
(ACSI). Customers can place orders online in English and Spanish by visiting
www.dominos.com or from a Web-enabled cell phone by visiting
mobile.dominos.com. More information on the Company, in English and Spanish,
can be found on the Web at www.dominosbiz.com.
SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT
OF 1995:
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning
of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. You can identify
forward-looking statements because they contain words such as "believes,"
"expects," "may," "will," "should," "seeks," "approximately," "intends,"
"plans," "estimates," or "anticipates" or similar expressions that concern our
strategy, plans or intentions. These forward-looking statements relating to
our anticipated profitability, ability to service our indebtedness, operating
performance, trends in our business and other descriptions of future events
reflect management's expectations based upon currently available information
and data. However, actual results are subject to future risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially include:
our level of long-term and other indebtedness; the uncertainties relating to
litigation; consumer preferences, spending patterns and demographic trends;
the effectiveness of our advertising, operations and promotional initiatives;
the strength of our brand in the markets in which we compete; our ability to
retain key personnel; new product and concept developments by Domino's and
other food-industry competitors; the ongoing profitability of our franchisees
and the ability of Domino's and our franchisees to open new restaurants and
keep existing restaurants in operation; changes in food prices, particularly
cheese, labor, utilities, insurance, employee benefits and other operating
costs; the impact that widespread illness or general health concerns may have
on our business and the economy of the countries in which we operate; severe
weather conditions and natural disasters; changes in our effective tax rate;
changes in government legislation and regulations; adequacy of our insurance
coverage; costs related to future financings; our ability and that of our
franchisees to successfully operate in the current credit environment;
changes in the level of consumer spending given the general economic
conditions including interest rates, energy prices and weakening consumer
confidence; availability of borrowings under our variable funding notes and
changes in accounting policies. Important factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from our expectations ("cautionary statement")
are more fully described in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including under the section headed "Risk Factors" in our annual
report on Form 10-K. We do not undertake to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future
events or otherwise.
SOURCE Domino's Pizza, Inc.
CONTACT: Lynn Liddle, Executive Vice President, Communications and
Investor Relations of Domino's Pizza, +1-734-930-3008/