Living West at LOREC Ranch: Standout Western Home Furnishings

Maybe it’s an ottoman made with luxurious leather and vibrant cowhide or a handcrafted table made of reclaimed wood from old railroad cars. Maybe it’s the prospect of having your ranch brand laser-engraved on the upholstery of a one-of-a-kind desk chair. Whatever you’re drawn to, when you step in to LOREC Ranch Home Furnishings’ Oklahoma City headquarters, you immediately know you’re somewhere special. 

The allure of artfully crafted home furnishings is on full display at LOREC Ranch. Almost 70 percent of its finished pieces come to life right on the premises in their manufacturing facility directly behind their Oklahoma City showroom. 

“We’re all under one roof, and that’s the beauty. Once you come into our store, and you smell the aromas of all the beautiful woods and leathers, you’re able to take a tour of the back where you can hear the sewing machines and staple guns, smell the wood as the carpenter saws, and listen to the upholsterer putting in the nail heads,” says owner Dr. Kari Lopez. “This piece is going to be in someone’s home, and once it gets to their home, it’s a masterpiece. It’s a work of art, because they know the labor and the passion and the love that’s put into their special design that they see from beginning to end.” 

Much like how a piece of furniture comes to life, bit by bit, so too did LOREC Ranch. Lopez didn’t start out with plans to be an owner of a Western furniture and décor destination; she actually began her career in medicine. Originally from the Midwest, Lopez studied premed at college in Milwaukee, but her love of travel and other cultures led her to study abroad for a year in Spain and then on to attend medical school, and eventually practice medicine, in Guadalajara, Mexico. Eventually she ended up as a college professor at Northwestern Oklahoma State University in Alva, Oklahoma. (Lopez laughs at the thought of Oklahoma being the perfect midpoint between Guadalajara and Milwaukee.) 

Mary Wich, Vice President (on left) and Dr. Kari Lopez, President, Founder, and CEO of LOREC Ranch Home Furnishings (on right).

“I’ve always loved design and fashion. That artistic side of me just came out,” she says. Her first LOREC Ranch iteration was a Western antique store in Alva, where she sourced one-of-a-kind furniture such as pieces made from old doors. It wasn’t long before Lopez had moved her store to Oklahoma City and started her own line of rustic furniture. LOREC Ranch’s first Oklahoma City location was in a large building Lopez bought after it had been damaged by a tornado. The store began to manufacture its pieces in-house and quickly made a name for itself wholesaling to large retailers like Dillard’s and to mom-and-pop shops. 

After the economic downtown in the early 2000s, LOREC Ranch relocated to a smaller building on the city’s “furniture row.” The spot has been home to the company ever since. 

Lopez recently officially purchased the building instead of renting, and it underwent a massive renovation. It’s now a go-to for shoppers searching for standout home décor. Here customers can find the unexpected, including largely custom-designed options in a variety of styles from Western, mountain modern, Santa Fe, rustic, Old World to contemporary. Top-end materials run from Pendleton by Sunbrella fabrics to axis deer hide, bison leather, live-edge wood, stone, and more. The end results are legacy items that will be passed down from generation to generation, Lopez says.

High Country Backless Barstool, in axis deer hide and ebony-stained solid wood frame. (In 24-, 26-, 28-, or 30-inch heights; customization available).

“I think the home furnishings we manufacture are statement pieces,” Lopez says. “It’s all about you designing your dreams, making them come true through fabrics and leathers and textures and color. When people come into the store, they’re so ready to find that one piece that they can put together at LOREC Ranch. And then it becomes eye candy for their home.” 

Beyond the visual appeal, customers appreciate the fact that the elegant furnishings offer durability, comfort, and usability. The store can customize most anything; there’s also a large selection of finished pieces for same-day pickup. 

But ultimately, it’s LOREC Ranch’s commitment to furnish the Western way of life that makes the brand a standout. 

“We believe in the American cowboy way, a shake of a hand, a look in the eye, the integrity of our American cowboy,” Lopez says. 

Wrangler Bed with signature LOREC Ranch serape bedding.

That all-American ethos attracted one particularly well-known customer: Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, who commissioned LOREC Ranch to make about 150 tables out of reclaimed freight-car wood for her mercantile in Pawhuska, Oklahoma. “She loved the history behind it, and she loved the aesthetics of it because it’s such a beautiful wood,” Lopez says. Drummond also had LOREC Ranch craft a lovely floral settee, a tufted ottoman, an old-door coffee table, and a Chesterfield couch made of bison leather for The Pioneer Woman bakery.

This connection prompted LOREC Ranch to open a Pawhuska location next to The Pioneer Woman so customers could take home many of the similar furnishings they’d just enjoyed at the mercantile and bakery. 

“It’s absolutely amazing to be there with the ranchers’ wives and everybody from across the world that come to The Pioneer Woman destination. They are a testimony to who we are as LOREC Ranch. I think we mirror one another because we believe in quality pieces, just like hardworking ranchers and farmers. That’s who we are at LOREC Ranch as well,” Lopez says. 

In addition to Oklahoma City and Pawhuska, the store also has a location in Amarillo, Texas, home of the American Quarter Horse Association. And there are tentative plans to expand to Wyoming or Colorado in the future. 

LOREC Ranch MOCs, handmade in Oklahoma City with Italian leather, hand-cut crepe rubber sole, 100 percent cotton serape fabric, and hand-cut fringe (Available in Baby MOCs and whole sizes for men and women).

At LOREC Ranch, it’s a family effort. Lopez’s sister Mary works with her as vice president of sales, taking customers on the experiential journey through the manufacturing facility. Her daughter Daniela recently developed her own LOREC Ranch boutique within the store, offering cowboy hats, moccasins, clothing, and accessories. 

As things have turned out, Lopez finds fulfillment on a path that took her away from medicine. As she sees it, she’s still helping people, just in a different way. 

“I love working with people and watching their dreams come true. That’s what we’re all about,” she says. “We just really love our clientele. We strive to treat them like gold.”

Visit LOREC Ranch Home Furnishings in Oklahoma City; Pawhuska, Oklahoma; and Amarillo, Texas. Visit them online at LORECRanch.com. Phone: 405.565.3750