Julius ‘Red’ Coleman, a Dallas ‘Liquor Giant,’ dies at 102

Julius “Red” Coleman — leader of one of the notable liquor chains in Dallas after World War II — has died at the age of 102.

Coleman, born on Nov. 10, 1923, worked to build up businesses that would reach over 30 stores, including Red Coleman’s Liquor shops. They would be sold off by around 2005, according to a News article.

Born in Ferris, Texas, he moved to Dallas during his childhood and would show his business savvy — along with his work ethic — in the new city. He delivered laundered clothing at age 12, and by 13, he was driving. After that, he sold snacks at high school football games and school supplies to his peers.

After getting married during World War II, he would join the U.S. Army Medical Corps as a medic in 1944 and was stationed at a hospital in England and then went to France.

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Following his return to the U.S., Coleman took the advice of his mother-in-law to go into the liquor business, and he opened his first Red-E Mart package store on Forest Avenue in 1946. He and his wife Frances worked side-by-side as they struggled to make their first store profitable.

But then a salesperson said there was a liquor store in the 3600 block of Samuel for sale, and it made money from the first day, Coleman said in an article in 2005 in the Dallas Business Journal.

He figured out early that a good location meant stores would do well despite the conventional wisdom that an independent couldn’t compete with a nearby chain operation, the Dallas Business Journal reported.

He served as president of both the Texas and the National Package Store Associations and was one of the original founders of Dallas Crime Stoppers.

Louis Glazer, who had known him since childhood and was president of TPSA, said Coleman “was a leader in our industry,” in the Dallas Business Journal. “He saw the future of retail liquor stores in neighborhoods when they were mostly in and around downtown.”

Coleman is predeceased by his wife Frances. He spoke glowingly of her, saying “Have you ever heard of love at first sight? That’s what it was” in the News article.

He died Feb. 13.

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