About Us
The Wedding Company for Adventurous Couples
Stylish, sophisticated, and affordable elopements and micro weddings
Cactus Collective Weddings was born out of frustration. Frustration isn’t an emotion that usually fits with romance, but pinky-promise this wedding coordinator’s love story has a happy ending.
McKenzi Taylor got engaged to her partner (now husband) in 2016. Both of them wanted a short engagement and a wedding on their own terms, just the two of them. Living in Vegas put a huge number of “Wham-bam thank you ma’am” ceremony options on their doorstep. But none of them felt right. Frustrated that very few wedding companies could meet their needs, McKenzi took matters into her own hands.
Already working as a wedding photographer, McKenzi knew she could organize a simple, meaningful elopement. One that included an unusual yet stylish venue, quality photos, and the magical little touches needed for an intimate ceremony.
Working with vendors she’d met through other wedding projects, McKenzi coordinated the ceremony she and Matt had imagined. An intimate service held in the breathtaking Red Rock Canyon.
Handling all of this convinced McKenzi that other adventurous couples probably wanted the same thing. Plus, someone who would remove the stress of organizing a destination wedding. And so Cactus Collective Weddings was born.
The team coordinating your wedding
McKenzi Taylor
Founder of Cactus Collective Weddings, McKenzi lives and works in Las Vegas, Nevada. She loves the business she’s built and is dedicated to getting the best of everything for her couples. When she’s not coordinating weddings, she’s searching for amazing venues to add to our collections or finding beautiful extra touches that complement your service.
Recently, she joined the board of directors for the Las Vegas chapter of the Wedding International Professionals Association (WIPA), a group of professionals who are dedicated to bringing new standards to the Las Vegas wedding scene. On the rare occasions she’s not working, McKenzi enjoys rock climbing, hiking, and downtime with her young family.
Ginger Munsell
When you reach out to Cactus Collective Weddings, there’s a chance you’ll end up speaking with Ginger. She’s one of our account managers, who’ll help you choose the right package for your style and budget (and then help you personalize it). Ginger will be your friendly day-to-day contact throughout planning, taking care of all the big ceremony details, so you can show up to your wedding feeling safe, happy and relaxed. She’s been working in wedding sales and planning since 2009 (you’re in safe hands, and she loves that every couple has their own unique story. Ginger married in Vegas in 2011 and is currently planning her own beautiful vow renewal.
Lauren Ahart
Lauren is exceptional at helping our couples select the perfect package for their special day. As an account manager at Cactus Collective Weddings, she’ll be your expert guide through every step of planning your wedding. Lauren’s journey in the wedding industry began in 2018, and she brings a wealth of experience and dedication to each couple she works with. A Las Vegas native, Lauren’s local knowledge is invaluable, and she understands the unique challenges that come with planning from afar. Outside of work, Lauren enjoys reading, baking, listening to Taylor Swift, and indulging in all things Disney.
Mel Ligueran
Mel makes all of the behind the scenes magic happen. It’s unlikely you’ll chat with her directly, but she’s the one organizing venue permits, booking vendors, and working out the ceremony timeline. What makes Cactus Collective Weddings so special to Mel is the company’s eco-friendly approach. Under McKenzi’s guidance, they work hard to create beautiful styling and decor options that make an impact on the day, rather than on the earth.
Penny Pena
Our friendly Client Experience Manager Penny is here to support couples through the entire planning process. With five years of wedding industry experience, she knows all the ins and outs to make your ceremony truly unforgettable. Having just gotten married herself, Penny also knows what it is like on both sides of planning. She’s excellent at making wedding dreams a reality. No matter what you want to accomplish, Penny can help you do it! She loves what she does. To Penny, working at Cactus Collective Weddings feels like hanging out with her friends and helping them plan their weddings all day.
Wendy King
Over the years Wendy King has worn many hats for our company. Today, she is the Vendor Program Manager. Her abilities to scout and onboard new vendors, train vendors, and provide vendors with ongoing education makes her an invaluable asset. Maintaining positive vendor relationships is integral to ensuring your wedding lives up to and surpasses the Cactus Collective standards and Wendy is the one who makes it happen! Off the clock Wendy enjoys time with family on the ski slopes in the winter and at the swimming pool in the summer. She enjoys exercising and going out to a fun happy hour every now and then.
Ashlyn Hadden
Social media is an ever expanding component of what we do and Ashlyn makes sure our team is always on the cutting edge. As our Social Media Manager she stays on top of all the latest trends, constantly posts to our channels, and provides our couples with behind the scene content services. Telling stories that preserve the special moments of your wedding day is her number one goal! In her free time Ashlyn feeds her soul with romance and romantasy audio books and binges her fave TV shows. She enjoys playing tennis and cuddling her fur babies – Nova and Valentine – and happy hour with her besties.
Joe Kinder
Video of your special day is made possible thanks to our talented cameraman Joe. He artfully weaves together the images, emotions, music and story of your wedding to craft a movie full of timeless memories. Joe got his start as a Videographer while shooting films of his rock climbing friends. He loves living in Las Vegas where in addition to acting as the perfect backdrop to your micro wedding or elopement, Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area also provides some of the best rock climbing in the American West. When the camera’s not rolling you can find him at the crag working his way along a route.
Aaron McElherne
A 20-year career in communications has seen our well-traveled Copywriter work in television, radio, digital media, newspapers and everything in between. Once a sports anchor and reporter in Illinois, Minnesota and New York, he now clickety-clacks at the keyboard bringing engaged couples valuable information, insider tips and tricks and relatable stories about how they too can have a Las Vegas wedding on their terms. At quitting time, Aaron heads one of two places; the golf course or the swimming pool. When the sun goes down you can find him grilling, listening to vinyl on his turntable or learning something new from a book, youtube video, or, as is often the case, his young son Jackson.
Crystal Lindenbach
Every powerhouse team needs a hall of fame caliber manager, Crystal is ours. As Business Manager, Crystal works behind the scenes overseeing day-to-day operations ensuring every wedding is magical and memorable. She juggles a mix of duties and helps solve any issues that come up along the way, so that the team keeps thriving and all of our couples are smiling. In her free time Crystal enjoys goofing around with her kids, exploring Las Vegas and discovering new favorite spots around town. She has two rowdy doggos, Rainey and Rosie.
Jake Jessop
Jake is a seasoned Human Resources professional and a member of the leadership team. With over a decade of experience in people operations, Jake plays an integral role in shaping the organization’s success on the human side of the business. From recruiting top-tier talent to seamless onboarding processes, Jake’s expertise ensures that we always operate at a high level and continue to move in the right direction. Jake lives in Denver with his partner Jon and their two pups, Bernie and Max. For fun, Jake likes to explore the great outdoors in Colorado and travel to new cities whenever possible.
Dan Healy
Our Chief Tech Officer, Dan, brings nearly 20 years of experience in technology development and strategic IT management to our team. He’s been contributing his computers and systems know-how to our operations for nearly a decade. Dan is originally from Virginia Beach and now resides in Maryland. In his free time he enjoys wrenching on cars in his garage which he’s kitted out with a hydraulic lift! He must really like heights because he’s also well on his way to obtaining his private plane pilot’s license. During down time he enjoys listening to podcasts.
Shannon Noack
Shannon has been with Cactus Collective Weddings since the beginning. She designs and maintains the CCW website and keeps it up to date and operational. She tackles all the new features and functionalities as we continue to grow and expand our offerings to couples. We knew her to be great at maintaining things as soon as she told us that she loves to bake sourdough bread in her spare time. Shannon also enjoys outdoor adventures with her family.
Barb Davids
You probably learned about Cactus Collective Weddings because of the marketing prowess of our Marketing Manager, Barb. She is continually keeping up with Google’s latest algorithms and is always discovering new tools that will help us connect with our community and reach our audience. If you’ve gotten her out-of-office email response it’s probably because she’s out on a long run, exploring the shops in a cute downtown somewhere or teaching her dog, Stone, new tricks.
We are a slim team, but work hard to help all our couples get exactly what they want and deserve for their wedding day!
Josh, Liz, Casey, Ginger, Laura, Griffin, Vanessa
Love Is Our Business, Caring Is In Our Hearts
We are committed to sustainability, conservation and equality for all.
Core Values
Be a Good Human
Approach interactions with a servant heart keeping in mind we are all unique and need to be treated with honesty, humility, and integrity.
Problem Solver
Creative problem solver who is able to flex, adapt, and change as MTaylor Inc. expands.
Personal Ownership
Possess a high level of personal ownership and individual drive regardless of circumstance.
Team Player
Help and support other members of MTaylor Inc.
Best Interest at Heart
Operate within the best interest of MTaylor Inc., our partners and our couples and always assume positive intent.
Mission
Be the Industry leader in modern and affordable weddings, capturing the true intention of commitment using scenery and photo-centric experiences.
Vision
Grow MTI in a way that is eco-friendly, with a focus on photo-centric wedding packages. Being a fair and ethical employer and contractor.
Vendors we partner with
When it comes to vendors, we’re extremely fussy with who we let near our clients. Like, bridezilla levels of picky. And for good reason. On your special day, only the best will do.
Vendors become our trusted partners because they provide reliable service Every. Single. Time and they go above and beyond for our clients. The cherry on top is they share our values.
What makes us extra special
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High-quality photos
Photography and photo editing are at the core of our collections. Couples say the images we photograph and edit are so good they look like they’re straight out of a magazine. Our photographers are the best of the best and will work closely with you to capture your vision for your day.
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On site host
Unique to Cactus Collective Weddings, our staff of on site hosts complete our company training program before solo-hosting any weddings. No temps or interns here. The highly organized on site host is available for all weddings, overseeing the vendor set up, and take care of you and your guests.
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Eco-friendly weddings
We’re a proud partner of Leave No Trace, a not-for-profit organization. They provide education and initiatives so every person who ventures outside can protect and enjoy our world responsibly.
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Supporters of marriage equality
Couples of any gender and sexuality are welcome. Love is love and we continue to educate ourselves on what more we can do to support marriage equality for LGBTQI+ communities.
