Celeb R.E.: Former DAK Electronics Founder Drew Kaplan’s Tarzana Home Returns After Major Renovation

This one falls into the “celebrity real estate-ish” category.

Drew Kaplan was not a traditional celebrity, but for anyone who remembers 1980s mail-order electronics catalogs, he was a familiar Valley name. Kaplan founded DAK Industries, the Canoga Park-based mail-order electronics company whose name came from his initials: Drew Alan Kaplan. DAK became known for unusual electronics, gadget-heavy catalogs, and Kaplan’s long, conversational product writeups that made readers feel like he was personally walking them through each item.

Back in 2014, I wrote about Kaplan’s custom Tarzana home in the post, Celeb R.E.: 80's Electronics Mail Order Founder Drew Kaplan Lists Custom 80's Tarzana Home Overlooking Braemar Country Club. At the time, the house at 19378 Lemmer Drive still had a very distinct 1980s personality, including its most unforgettable feature: a large indoor pool and spa.

The property is now back on the market after a major renovation. According to the current Redfin listing, the home is listed for $13,985,000, down from its original 2026 asking price of $14,998,000. Public listing history shows it last sold in May 2021 for $2,800,000.

The home is listed as a 6-bedroom, 7-bathroom residence with approximately 14,479 square feet on a 2.19-acre lot. Built in 1981, it has been updated with a brighter, cleaner, modern luxury look.

Kaplan’s ownership history also makes the property interesting. Public records appear to show that Kaplan purchased the property on December 13, 1983 for $705,000 and finally sold it on May 7, 2021 for $2,800,000, after what appear to have been multiple earlier sale attempts in 2003, 2011, 2013, and 2014.

Thankfully, the indoor pool appears to have been retained.

That pool was the feature that made the home so memorable in the earlier listing. While much of the original 1980s character has been updated to current tastes, keeping the indoor pool preserves the one element that made the property feel so custom and unusual.

The setting is another highlight. The home sits high in the Tarzana hills above Braemar Country Club, with views over one of the course’s challenging and fun holes. In my earlier post, I noted that the home overlooked Braemar’s 5th hole, and the current listing continues to emphasize the golf-course views, privacy, and end-of-cul-de-sac location.

Kaplan’s DAK story is pure San Fernando Valley business history. In a long-form interview with Jay Abraham, Kaplan described himself as a “simple guy” who loved electronics, science, and cutting-edge technology, and wanted to bring that hobby to everyone else. His entrepreneurial streak started early. As a teenager, he laid thousands of bricks to terrace a hillside, then moved into car stereo installations, used studio recording tape, and mail-order sales while still a student at UCLA.

That early tape business became the seed of DAK. Kaplan bought used recording tape from Los Angeles studios, repackaged it, and sold it to other students and audio hobbyists. Later, he bought government surplus tape, built mailing lists from warranty cards, and eventually operated a tape manufacturing business before DAK became the catalog electronics company people remember.

What made Kaplan different was not just the products. It was the way he explained them.

In the Jay Abraham interview, Kaplan repeatedly described his approach as looking at products “sideways.” He did not want to sell a product by simply listing features. He wanted to explain what it did for the customer. A computer was not just a computer; it could be presented as a “sophisticated typewriter.” An intercom became a “Hey, Martha phone.” A pulse watch became a “Wrist-EKG.” A camcorder became “Daddy’s Pride and Joy.” That kind of wording made technical products feel personal, useful, and understandable.

By the late 1980s, DAK had become a major pre-internet catalog business, mailing thick catalogs across the United States and Canada. DAK sold everything from radar detectors and stereo speakers to security lighting systems, handheld photocopiers, tiny televisions, computers, home automation products, and other gadgets that felt futuristic at the time.

The Jay Abraham interview also adds a useful detail about the company’s rise and fall. Kaplan said DAK eventually reached a year of about $238 million in sales before banking issues contributed to the company’s demise. Even then, he framed the experience positively, saying he was ready to start a new DAK again “in a minute.”

While Kaplan is no longer selling electronics, he appears to have returned to another passion: photography and scuba diving. His site, DrewKaplan.com, features dive photography and travel videos. He also has a YouTube channel with travel and scuba-related videos, though the most recent uploads appear to be from several years ago, suggesting he may have taken a hiatus from posting. Kaplan also appeared in a January 1, 2021 interview, “Drew Kaplan, Approaching Sales From a New Perspective”, where he discussed his background as the founder of the DAK Catalog and DAK Industries.

The DAK name has also continued beyond Kaplan. The DAK.com website remains active today selling electronics and audio products, now under Sol Harari, a longtime Kaplan associate who acquired the online evolution of the business from Kaplan in 2012. Harari relocated the company to Brooklyn, New York, and has continued the DAK tradition of personally testing products and presenting them with the same detailed, story-driven sales style that made Kaplan’s original catalogs so memorable.

That makes this more than just another luxury listing. It is a reminder of a very specific Valley era: Canoga Park mail-order electronics, gadget catalogs, long-form sales writing, custom hillside homes, and 1980s excess.

Today, the house has been transformed into a polished modern estate, but the indoor pool, golf-course setting, long Kaplan ownership, and DAK connection still make it one of Tarzana’s more interesting real estate stories.