Yes, the wards are segregated for a reason, but sadly, the player base doesn't pay attention to that. If the CON guild is in Gridania, why are all the retainers selling CON weapons stationed in Ul'dah? People crowd Ul'dah to the point that if you are anywhere else in the game, you can't find any items. The markets in Gridania and Limsa Lominsa are practically empty (I have both of my retainers in a single ward in Gridania, and there are only 5 retainers in the ward total, yet the same ward in Ul'dah is so crowded you can't even move. With the Item Search feature, it doesn't matter what ward you're in; it's just like going to Wal-Mart, you can find everything, but it may not be in the right part of the store.