GSA predicts strong online sales

The General Services Administration plans to more than triple the sales on its online shopping mall this year.

GSA brought in $125 million in sales through GSA Advantage in fiscal 2000. But the agency has much higher expectations for fiscal 2001, when it anticipates sales of $500 million, said Ed O'Hare, chief information officer of GSA's Federal Supply Service.

GSA Advantage offers 1.3 million products and services from 3,139 FSS schedule vendors. All schedule vendors are required to register on the online e-commerce site; however, O'Hare said only about half have done so.

In the future, GSA plans to offer enhanced services on GSA Advantage, including electronic bill payment and presentation, consolidation of shipping orders, problem resolution, outsourced processing and hosting, and dynamic pricing models.

Meanwhile, GSAAuctions.gov, a three-week-old site that sells excess federal personal property, has gotten off to a successful start, O'Hare said. It has auctioned 630 items for a total value of $550,000. The site, which is hosted by an application service provider, is likely the "model of what we'll do in the future," he said, speaking at an e-commerce seminar sponsored by the Coalition for Federal Procurement.

O'Hare also announced that he is leaving GSA after 28 years at the agency for a job in the private sector. O'Hare begins his new job on Feb. 19 as a senior associate for the information technology team at Booz-Allen & Hamilton Inc.'s worldwide technology business.