about Coastal Leadership Group
Founded in 2025 by Martin Harrell, the purpose of Coastal Leadership Group is to work with leaders of organizations on transformative growth by focusing on culture, strategy, communication, and organizational structure.
Martin is a 1999 graduate of Wake Forest University. His career began in finance and accounting at Circuit City Stores’ corporate office, but quickly pivoted toward sales and executive leadership. He spent over two decades at Coastal Construction Products, a distributor of specialty building products. Ascending from Outside Sales to CEO in twelve years, he discovered his passion for creating winning teams through a focus on culture, strategy execution and operational excellence.
As CEO of Coastal Construction Products from 2012 to 2022, the business scaled revenues from $70MM to $250MM through organic growth and acquisitions. As a leader, Martin focused on reinforcing a team-oriented culture, where success was defined by the team’s performance, never an individual contributor. With a focus on strategic planning and execution of business plans, Coastal scaled to become number one its industry.
In 2018, Martin led a transaction process that brought in a private-equity firm to assist with the company’s “buy-and-build” strategy. During this four-year stretch, Coastal more than doubled EBITDA through executing acquisitions and strategic priorities. In 2022, Beacon Building Products (a Fortune 500 distributor of building materials) selected Coastal and it’s leadership team to be the foundation to create a new division focused on sealants, waterproofing and concrete repair. Coastal was selected as the foundation for this new venture based on its reputation as an organization with an elite culture, strategic focus and a history of successful integrations of acquisitions.
From 2022 to 2025, Martin served as the President of Beacon Waterproofing and a member of the Executive Team of Beacon Building Products. At Beacon, he drove performance and strategic growth across multiple sectors, more than doubling division revenues in two and a half years. In April 2025, Beacon was purchased by a strategic buyer, and Martin left the company as part of the transaction.
Martin has dedicated over two decades to service and leadership within his community, most notably through his long-standing commitment to Habitat for Humanity of Jacksonville. Since 2004, he has served as a board member, passionately advancing the organization's mission to alleviate poverty by building homes, communities, and hope through faith-driven collaboration.
Martin serves on the Board of Directors for the Veterans Museum in Jacksonville, FL. The museum’s mission is to bring the stories of veterans and their families to life, honoring their service, safeguarding their legacies, ensuring that their voices and valor shape the hearts and minds of all Americans.
From 2017 to 2023, Martin served on the Board of Trustees of Riverside Presbyterian Day School. From 2021 to 2023 he held the role of President of the Board of Trustees, where he supported the administration through financial and strategic planning. His leadership reflects a deep belief in the power of education and responsibility to the community.
Martin enjoys spending time with his family and pursues numerous outdoor activities, like golf, fishing and kayaking.
