John Cena's heel turn had an unexpected effect on his merch sales.
The Cenation Leader had been on one of the longest babyface runs in the history of wrestling before Elimination Chamber. Even the Guinness Book of World Records recognizes it as the longest run as a fan favorite before turning into a villain.
One of the biggest reasons fans thought WWE would never pull the trigger was Cena's unparalleled popularity that helped the company sell a lot of merchandise and move tickets.
During his recent appearance on The Bill Simmons podcast, however, WWE president Nick Khan revealed that John Cena has actually been one of their top merch sellers even after turning heel:
So, here’s what I thought was interesting about that whole process, number one, John Cena’s merchandise, still off the charts. Top of show, at every event or almost every event. The collective decision to make that heel turn, Triple H, Cena, Dwayne Johnson, Cody, everybody, immediately on board with the whole thing.
One of the reasons for John Cena's continued dominance in the merchandise department is all the gear the company has launched centered around the wrestling veteran's retirement tour.
The 16-time world champion will be looking to make history by breaking the record for the most world title wins in WWE when he challenges Cody Rhodes for the WWE Championship in the main event of WrestleMania 41 this Sunday.
Though many fans believe that the build for this match has not achieved the heights it could have. You can check out what Triple H said about the 'slightly weird' build for this WrestleMania 41 main event here.
