Paris Grocery Titan Naouri Turns to Protege to Save Empire (1)

Jean-Charles Naouri built a French grocery empire over more than 30 years with generous helpings of borrowed money and financial engineering. It may take new management to keep it from collapsing under the weight of its debt.

The fate of Casino Guichard-Perrachon SA now rests on a deal with Moez-Alexandre Zouari, who got his start two decades ago running stores under franchises from Naouri’s company, and whether the two men can pull off a merger of two retail groups. Their ambition is to list the new company on Euronext as soon as September, according to three people familiar with ...