Earlier this year, I found myself standing in a city park parking lot unloading a semi truck full of organic groceries. You may ask how I got here, and the answer is simple: I wanted to find better groceries. I wrote this Azure Standard review because I wanted to share my experience, tips, and ideas for how to get the most from this unique resource. I hope my review helps you as you consider ordering from Azure!
Azure Standard is “a natural health food distributor bringing bulk and specialty health foods to communities all across the nation”. They offer many grocery items in addition to health, supplements, homestead, cleaning, household, outdoor, and garden products. Azure Standard specializes in bulk goods of many common pantry (and other) items. The online-only store offers tens of thousands of items for everyone for every need. It might not be the most convenient or cost-effective for everyone everywhere, but if you are looking for high-quality bulk goods shipped near you, then you should consider Azure Standard.
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Table of Contents
How does Azure Standard Work?
The process for ordering from Azure is pretty simple:
- Find your nearest drop location
Drop locations vary depending on where you live. You can see all the drop information by clicking on each little blue circle on the linked map. I live in North Georgia so there are a few different locations nearby. Some drops are hosted at a public place like a park or community center, some are at people’s homes. You can also see contact information for the drop coordinator. After you sign up for a specific drop location, this person will shoot you an email with the exact time of the delivery and other helpful information.
- Find the order deadline
The week before your drop occurs is when you need to finalize your order. Once you choose a location, the bar on the top of the site will tell you when to have your order finalized by. I like this because I can add things to my order throughout the month and checkout within a day or two of the deadline.
- Shop and place your order
Once the order is placed you will receive an email confirming it and the approximate delivery time. This time might be something like “week of March 6th”.
- Wait to hear the exact delivery date and time
The drop coordinator will email you to let you know what exact time the drop will happen and other instructions such as: “please arrive 15 minutes early” or “please check in with the coordinator if this is your first order”.
- Arrive for delivery
Always arrive a few minutes early to your first Azure Standard Drop. If you can, find the coordinator and touch base with them. Every location works a little bit differently, so your coordinator will likely have some notes and instructions for you.
- Pick up and enjoy
Before you leave the drop location, always check if everything you ordered has arrived. Sometimes this can be confusing because smaller items come packed together in boxes.
- Rinse and repeat
Depending on how often you need things and how convenient the location is for you, you can order as often as every month or as infrequently as you like. I like to order one a month because we usually need different items at different times. Plus I go through a ton of flour, as you can imagine!
Pros and cons of Azure Standard
Pros
Community oriented
Because you need to go to a physical drop point to pick up your order, a community starts to form naturally. This is a great way to meet people who might have similar interests as you. I’ve found that everyone at the drop has been so social and lovely.
Unique products
There are quite a few things found on the website that are very difficult to find elsewhere, especially if you live far from speciality stores.
Bulk prices
I love being able to buy certain items in larger quantities at bulk prices such as flour, beans, pasta, rice, and more. The larger the quantity the lower the price.
No middleman
This means there aren’t marketing or third party shipping costs associated with ordering from Azure Standard. This is how they keep their prices low and their advertising simple.
Great for big families
If you have a lot of mouths to feed, Azure Standard is an excellent option. It’s like a healthier version of Costco without the packaging, excess plastic, or overwhelming warehouse.
Great for rural living
If you live rurally you probably don’t have access to many bulk or health food stores. Azure has tons of rural drop locations so you can access these foods locally. If you can’t find a drop near you, you can set up one through their site.
Cons
Pick up locations
For some, the drop locations are quite a drive. This could range from inconvenient to impossible depending on your lifestyle, schedule, and responsibilities.
Shipping instead of location
Sometimes I want to shop in a physical store, sample products, and ask questions. With an online shop none of these things are possible. Azure does have great customer service, however, so you can get questions answered via email or phone.
Pick up time
If you have an office job or other time-sensitive responsibilities, it might be tough to make the drop location and time. This can, of course, be mitigated by having a friend or family member pick up for you, but not everyone has that option.
Not local
As you may know by now, I’m a huge advocate for shopping locally when possible especially for seasonal items like milk, eggs, and produce. Azure items are sourced all over the US and are less likely to be from nearby. I usually stick to pantry staples that I don’t source locally (like flour, beans, coconut milk, etc) but you can also find great seasonal items.
Shipping costs
Because there is not an in person place to shop, you will always need to pay a shipping fee with your order. This amount depends on your location and drop size but can add up pretty quickly when you’re buying heavy bags of animal feed and large boxes of canning supplies.
Tips for ordering from Azure Standard
- Bring a box cutter to your drop to make sure everything has arrived
- Check out the sales and clearance sections when making selections
- Ask fellow Azure customers at the drop for recommendations on their favorite products
- Use the favorites feature to keep track of what you like
- Use the “products I’ve ordered” tab to remember what you’ve tried before
- Explore the seasonal items category for produce and other items in season
- Consider how you can store bulk items for longevity:
- Jars
- Food grade buckets
- Freezer
- Canning
- Always say yes to the catalogue if you like to flip through before going online
- Read reviews when considering a product
An interesting thing – they are now carried at a number of grocery stores at least here in the Pacific NW. Town & Country Markets in Seattle resell their big bags of flour in their bulk aisle, and the Skagit Food Co-op is now selling their branded canning jars. Yet not a peep on their website about the fact that they are partnering with retailers. Locally, the Azure drop sites no longer provide what their pickup times are like they used to ! So you just have to randomly be able to pick up your stuff, often in the middle of the day, and have to scramble to get your stuff otherwise you’re SOL for the things you ordered. It’s a good option for folks without good bulk options, but they’ve done a downhill slide over the past years for sure.
That’s so interesting! I live in the south, so I don’t see any of their products in retail down here…
Wow, I fondly appreciate your detailed information . Thank you
Keep this going please, great job!
I only ever recall paying a shipping fee on orders of $40 or less. Am I mistaken? This would be different than “always”.
May be the case, it also might depend on the location!
i live in alaska and we ALWAYS pay shipping, which has gotten quite expensive with fuel prices and other factors at play.
That sucks! I’ll bet everything is so expensive up there