Coleman was born in
Corner Brook,
Newfoundland and Labrador in 1953. He is the eldest of eight children, three boys and five girls, born to Eugene and Lorraine Coleman. His father was the second generation owner of Colemans retail business, which operated grocery and furniture stores. During his youth, Coleman would work in the family business, from sweeping floors, to stocking shelves and selling furniture. He also spent one summer selling newspaper subscriptions, and another two summers working in the City of Corner Brook economic development office. As well, Coleman set up a small business selling advertising for a project he was working on. Coleman moved to
Nova Scotia to receive his post-secondary education. He first earned a
Bachelor of Arts degree at
St. Francis Xavier University, before receiving his Masters of Economics from
Dalhousie University. It was during his final months in university that he met his future wife Yvonne Hennebury, a nurse originally from
St. John's. A year after they began dating, the couple were married. The two decided they wanted to have a big family; as such, after Yvonne gave birth to their second child, she left nursing to be a stay-at-home mother. The two had seven children in total; Eugene, Anna Claire, Maggie, Janet, Aidan, Maria and Yvette. Coleman began his career as an economist with
Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro in St. John's. He applied for the job while still living in Halifax, and he could not afford to travel to St. John's for the interview. He managed to secure funds to travel to St. John's through the Unemployment office after verifying the interview with them, an act which helped secure him the job. Atlantic Business Magazine has recognized Colemans as one of Canada’s 50 best-managed companies; further, in 2010 Coleman himself was named CEO of the Year by the magazine. Coleman, along with his cousin Mike Coleman, were named recipients of the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers (CFIG) 2013 Life Member Designation. He was also president and
chief executive officer of Humber Valley Paving and Humber Valley Asphalt and Aggregates. In 2012, Coleman was appointed to the Board of Directors of Emera Newfoundland & Labrador Holdings Inc. The company is a subsidiary of
Emera Inc., which is tasked with the design and construction of the Maritime Link portion of the
Muskrat Falls hydro project. He resigned is position when he entered provincial politics. He has served on numerous other boards, including
Newfoundland Power, Fisher Institute of Applied Arts and Technology, Immaculate Heart of Mary private Catholic School, Council for Canadian Unity, Rocky Mountain Liquor Corporation,
The North West Company, Fishery Products International, United Grocers Inc. and Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors. ==2014 leadership election==