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Will silence prove deadly for Jimmy John's?

The killing of Cecil the lion is putting big game hunting at the forefront of the public's attention, and some consumers are directing their rage at Jimmy Johns. The chain has made no comment about the claims.

August 6, 2015 by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com

The killing of Cecil the lionhas put big game hunting at the forefront of news reels and consumer minds, and some consumers are now directing their rage at Jimmy Johns. Tweeters have posted a variety of comments urging customers to boycott the chain after viewing what appear to be photos of the chain’s owner, Jimmy John Liautaud, posing next to a dead or injured rhino. Another photo allegedly shows him giving the “thumbs up” sign next to a slumped-over elephant. Posters are using the hashtags, #boycottjimmyjohns. See a few below.

These pics are the scumbag owner of @jimmyjohns killing beautiful animals. I beg everyone to never eat there again pic.twitter.com/OsBLC6H2Iv

— Jonah Lupton (@JonahLupton) August 2, 2015

@jimmyjohns eco friendly company with an owner who goes trophy hunting!! #BoycottJimmyJohns Please RT!!! pic.twitter.com/dR85CrHo5n

— causeribbon(@causeribbon) August 3, 2015

#BoycottJimmyJohns until it resembles dead elephant. https://t.co/zcLRpAXzAY

— HotCoffeeAndPie (@hotcoffeeandpie) August 3, 2015

Are these claims true?

These photos may or may not be Liautaud, according to Snopes.com, a site dedicated to uncovering the truth of social media claims.

“While we cannot definitively say that the man pictured in the above-displayed photographs is Jimmy John Liautaud, we can say that The Hunting Report, a magazine that has been covering 'high-quality big game hunting in North America and Africa' since the 1980s, has recorded several of Liautaud’s hunts for animals such as wolf, rhinoceros, deer, and lynx," stated Snopes.com.

Snopes also reported The Hunting Reporthas a record of Jimmy John Liautaud (although misspelled “Liaufand”) going on a "big game hunt in Botswana for elephant, buffalo  and zebra with Johan Calitz Safaris." (Johan Calitz Safaris offers fair-chase dangerous and plains-game safaris to the discerning hunter in remote wilderness areas in Africa," according to its Facebook page.)

Jimmy John's has not made any public comment denying or verifying the photos and rumors. The chain's Twitter account has not mentioned the boycott call or the alleged photos. FastCasual.com reached out to Jimmy John’s for comment, but at press time no reply had been received. Other media outletshave had similar (non) experiences with Jimmy John's over the issue.

The photos, which could have been taken during a 2010 trip to Africa aren't exaclty new. In fact, the Chicago Tribune has been reporting on Liautaud's alleged hobby for the past few years. The story seems to have popped back up with even longer legs in light of the recent Cecil killing. 

Whether it’s true or not, the damage may be swift as the chain boasts a huge social media presence — nearly 400,000 Twitter followers. That’s normally a great thing for any business, but it may prove costly for Jimmy John’s as Tweeters can so easily spread their rage. And with no response coming from Jimmy John or his marketing team, outrage and accusations are the only thing these Tweeters have to go on.

About Cherryh Cansler

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Cherryh Cansler is VP of Events for Networld Media Group and publisher of FastCasual.com. She has been covering the restaurant industry since 2012. Her byline has appeared in Forbes, The Kansas City Star and American Fitness magazine, among many others.

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