some of the bear school items, such as the lower tiered swords, are found in Velen. As well as the Mastercraft gear, which you can pretty much obtain, once you land in Velen. Just look up guides on their location. Once you find one piece, you can unlock the treasure hunt quest for the rest. Yes, the majority of them are in Skellige, though.
Sure its random merchant? Maybe random armorer or blacksmith on Skellige will sell the map quest starter. For sure not on the main land and not some random herbalist on the isles either.