French music label boss mulls Virgin France offer-paper

PARIS (Reuters) - Patrick Zelnik, the owner of French music label Naive Records, is considering an offer to buy retailer Virgin Megastore France, which is undergoing a court-ordered restructuring, according to newspaper Les Echos on Monday.

Zelnick, who co-founded the first books-to-music Virgin Megastore in France on the Champs-Elysees in Paris in 1988 with British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group , told Les Echos he would submit an offer "within two to three weeks".

Zelnick hoped to get backing for his offer from the French authorities, including the sovereign wealth fund FSI.

Virgin Megastore France filed for bankruptcy on January 9.

A court on January 14 ordered the firm, which operates 26 Virgin-branded stores in France, to be restructured.

Butler Capital Partners bought a majority stake in Virgin Megastore France in 2007 from media-to-aerospace group Lagardere which itself bought the chain from Branson in 2001. (Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Greg Mahlich)