Lubavitchers wear the same borsalino fedoras, except that their pinch is closer and the back is pinched with three points like the Rebbe had on his hat. The Rebbe never told the Chassidim to emulate his style. Quite the contrary, there are some letters in which the Rebbe wrote that Lubavitchers should wear long coat, especially on Shabbes (the kapota). He explained in these letters that the change in the Lubavitch dress code is due to some g’zeiros edicted by the Russian gov’t, but now that Lubavitch relocated in America, they should reintroduce the old Chassidic levush. But most Lubavitchers didn’t follow that call because “a Chosid wants to be like his Rebbe.” (The Rebbe wore short jackets before the Nesius)
In regards to Shtreimels: In Lubavitch and other Chassidic groups in Russia and Ukraine shtreimels weren’t common and only the Rebbe and Yechidei Segula wore a shtreimel, and even then the Rebbeim only wore them in the Town of Lubavitch not when traveling (except the Rebbe Rayatz after his daughter’s wedding to The Rebbe from then on wore it outside Lubavitch)
In continuation to RSo’s anecdote: After The Rebbe took leadership as Rebbe one year later, he’s mother in law offered to give him the shtreimel, but he declined it at that time, and made some remarks to the effect that “that opportunity has passed” [i.e., in some way, it was now inappropriate to take possession of the shtreimel since initially he had been denied]. This exact question was once posed to the Rebbe by a very prominent rabbi from Israel, who sat on the rabbinical court in Jerusalem. The visitor remarked to the Rebbe that if he would wear a shtreimel, he would gain another 50,000 chassidim. The Rebbe replied, “Where would these chassidim come from? From other chassidic groups, or from Hashomer Hatzair?”
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