Melissa Dempster
Chief Executive Officer, Toys R Us and Babies R Us South Africa
Melissa Dempster is Chief Executive Officer of Toys R Us and Babies R Us South Africa, in the role since March 2026.
Toys R Us and Babies R Us South Africa is a privately owned specialist toy and baby retailer that runs 61 stores after buying 13 ToyZone stores in 2025. Dempster is a chartered accountant who joined from the Mr Price Group, where she was managing director of Sheet Street.
In the job
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Dempster became chief executive of the retailer, saying her priorities were integrating the ToyZone stores, availability and a curated specialist range. Source
Career before
- Head of merchandise planning for general merchandise categories, Massmart
- Planning executive, Mr Price Sport
- Planning director, Mr Price Home
- Managing director, Sheet Street (Mr Price Group)
Education
Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting and Finance, University of KwaZulu-Natal; Postgraduate Honours in Accounting (CTA), University of South Africa
Sources
Facts last checked 3 November 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.