German Doner Kebab bolsters global leadership with two new hires

The two are former industry leaders from Domino’s Pizza.

German Doner Kebab (GDK) has appointed two industry experts from Domino’s.

Simon Wallis joins as CEO after 13 years at Domino’s Pizza Group (DPG), where he most recently held the position of Chief Transformation Officer. Meanwhile, Robin Caley, following eight years at DPG where he was the CEO of both Germany and Norway and Group Business Development Director, takes on the role of Chief Development Officer. 

Simon Wallis succeeds current GDK CEO Imran Sayeed, who has been promoted to the position of Group CEO at Hero Brands’ F&B division, which also includes a stable of emerging brands such as Choppaluna, Island Poke, Dirty Bones, and ‘Sides’, a concept jointly developed with YouTube superstars, the Sidemen.

At DPG, Simon led Domino’s to become the dominant pizza brand in the UK. He drove the digitisation of the business with the launch of the brand’s first-ever mobile ordering app worldwide, established flagship media partnerships to help the Domino’s brand become synonymous with ‘nights in front of the TV’, and introduced game-changing innovation such as Domino’s Stuffed Crust pizza. 

Meanwhile, Robin Caley was part of the same team that shaped Domino’s dominance in the UK, having opened over 350 stores and significantly improving franchise relations for the organisation. With respect to his new role and GDK, Robin notes: “I’ve watched the brand grow in the UK over the last few years and have really admired the proposition the team have developed. I’m delighted to join the team to drive the expansion of the brand in the UK and overseas.”